


Trinary Star

by Xrross



Category: Id:Invaded (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Bookstore, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Detectives, Brilliant detectives are their own characters, F/M, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Mental Health Issues, Murder Mystery, Neurodiversity, Neurological Disorders, No Kura, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Private Investigators, Self-Harm, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Tags May Change
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:41:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 46,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23681794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xrross/pseuds/Xrross
Summary: An ex-cop disillusioned with the system, a former mental patient searching for a point, and a university student eager to live her dreams. Three completely separate individuals, linked by their shared drive to find purpose and meaning in their lives. But when the opportunity to find said meaning arises, will they grasp it by the throat and dive in, or will it prove too much for any of them to manage?AU where the brilliant detectives are their own characters.Deals with mental heath issues. Mention of/featuring self-harm.
Relationships: Narihisago Akihito | Sakaido/Narihisago Ayako
Comments: 253
Kudos: 40





	1. Brilliant Detectives; or, Dreams of Deduction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since all brilliant detectives seem to be younger versions of their real identities, I've given them ages that reflect that. Also, since Sakaido and Anaido don't have first names, I've made up my own, though just for simplicities sake, I'll keep referring to them by their last names. These obviously aren't canon.
> 
> Naruhito Sakaido: 27  
> Kenzo Anaido: 24  
> Miyo Hijiriido: 18

"FUCK!"

Ayako jumped at the sudden curse, accompanied by a vicious slamming of the door. Scrambling for the remote, she turned the TV off and hopped off the sofa, hurrying into the hallway just in time to see the bedroom door slam shut. Letting out a small sigh, she walked over and slowly opened the door.

"Naru?" She said, the light from the hallway projected her shadow over the bed, as well as her boyfriend, who was spread face down on it motionless, his blazer laying discarded on the floor, his tie draped across the dresser. "Naruhito..." Her lips pressed together in a frown, Ayako crossed the room and sat on the bed next to him, laying her hand on his head, running her fingers through his untamable, hot pink hair, waiting patiently. 

".... Mhy rmmm huh hase...."

Ayako giggled. "Silly, I can't hear you through the pillow!"

Sakaido remained still for a moment, before slowly turning his head to face her, his face scrunched up in a tense, furious state. "They dropped the case... the Asuaki Case..."

"Really?" Ayako said, the surprise clear of her face. "But I thought you said last night you were beginning to make some headway?"

No answer.

"Naru... what's wrong?"

Sakaido's hand balled into fists, his arms beginning to shake as he pushed himself off the bed and turned over so he was sitting up. Settling down with a groan, he stared down at his feet, too upset to look his partner in the face.

"They stopped the case last year..." he admitted. "I'd been gathering evidence on my own time since then but... today they told me to drop it, and focus on other work."

"But why?" Ayako asked.

"Cheif said that it was open and shut now. He didn't believe that there was anything left. Besides, he wants as many people as possible focused on our current, easier batch of cases..." Sakaido explained.

"Oh Naru..." Ayako said, leaning in and wrapping her arms around him. Sakaido relented for a few seconds, but soon gave in, sitting up straighter and returning the hug, burying his face in her shoulder. "I know you were really invested in this case. Just like the other one... the... ummm..."

"The Hayaseura Case..." Sakaido said, his speech slightly muffled. "I joined the force to solve crimes, to stop murderers... to help people. But I haven't solved a case in years. It almost feels like being an officer is holding me back."

Ayako stroked the back of his head softly as Sakaido closed his eyes, the melancholia consuming his system. "You try so hard, don't you?" She said, her voice low and soothing. "That drive to save people, it's one of the things I love most about you... I know you'll do great things..."

"My Brilliant Detective..."

* * *

_.... eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen._

A sense of relief washed over Anaido as he cleared the last of the steps leading into his living spaces. Fifteen. It was a comfortable number, its security always lulling him into a relaxed state. The effects were especially strong after the long-

"Be. Quiet."

Gritting his teeth as he forced his mouth into a smile, Anaido forced himself to abandon that train of thought before he got lost down a rabbit hole of numbers again. Which was ridiculous. After all, numbers were just that: numbers. There was no meaning behind any of them. They were just numbers. Continuing down the dark hallway, Anaido opened the door at the end, and stepped into his kitchen for the first time in a year. He stood at the entrance for a moment, indulging in nostalgia for a moment, before flicking the light on and moving down the cramped space to the fridge. He opened it. 

Empty.

"Good thing I had dinner at the hospital," he said, shutting the door and walking back out, leaving the light on. Making his way into the living room, he turned the light on. The endless numbers he'd scribbled on had been replaced by a plain turquoise wallpaper. The coffee table, recliner and sofa were all still there, though covered in a noticeable layer of dust, as was the TV, which surprised him. He'd expected it, along with a few other things to have been stolen, but it seemed everything was still there. The shop downstairs was also untouched. 

"I guess not many people nowadays are gonna rob a bookshop of all places..." he said with a chuckle as he plopped himself on the recliner, ignoring the updraft of dust flying everywhere. "Then again, I wasn't here for long, so it's not like many people noticed me." He looked over at the sofa, and tilted his head like a canine. "Why did I buy that again? It's not like I ever got any visitors."

"......"

"......"

"Ehehe... I really am insane, aren't I?" he asked to no one. Letting out a low, ominous giggle, he got to his feet and shrugged off his trench coat, leaving it on the chair as he walked back out and downstairs. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Anaido opened the door leading into his bookshop, once again taking in a dry, pulpy smell. Having left the light on when he first came through, he walked straight in. 

The shop was of a modest size, big enough to hide oneself in, but still small enough to feel cosy. It was dominated by varying shades of brown, and the bulk of the room was taken up by six large bookshelves (which each had twenty shelves themselves), each separated by paths a meter or so wide. On the far left was the desk and door leading to the upstairs flat, facing the entrance out onto the street directly. Looking through the glass door, Anaido could see people rushing home, trying to escape the sudden rain. Going past the desk and walking over to the far right, the floorboards creaking beautifully, he turned to the nearest bookshelf and ran his finger along the eighth shelf from the bottom. This was his favourite shelf: detective fiction. Selecting a book at random, Anaido's face lit up when he saw the title.

**_The Hound of Baskervilles_ **

"Ahaha! Must be my lucky day!" He exclaimed, before catching himself, forcing his excitement down. 

_There's no reason for me to be excited. Three is just a number, no different to than any other,_ he thought as he walked over to the small table in the corner. Pulling up the nearest chair (again wondering why he had more than one), he crossed his legs and opened up the first page. He'd need to catch up with all the books that had been published since he'd been hospitalised, but tonight, just to get himself settled down and back into things, he'd indulge in one of the classics.

Even if he had no hope of being one himself, that didn't change the fact that he enjoyed reading about them more than ever.

Those Brilliant Detectives.

* * *

"Uuuughhh...." Hijiriido groaned, saving her work and finally shutting down her laptop, her eyes burning from the hours of staring at a screen. Unable to bear the sight of the device any longer, she closed the laptop and stood up from the desk, doing a few stretches and relishing in the pops and cracks as her body loosened up. Sauntering over to her bed, she fell face first on it, waiting for the ache of her eyeballs to subside. Once they no longer felt like they were about to explode, she opened them and pushed herself back up. A chill hit her face as the sound of rain had begun to pick up, so she leaned over the desk and pushed the window shut. As the pitter-patter of rain hitting the window and walls began to fill the room, Hijiriido could already feel herself begin to relax.

Pushing her chair away, she opened the desk cupboard and pulled out the small stack of books she'd brought with her from home, about fifteen. Sitting crossed-legged on the floor, surrounded by books like a child with her toys, Hijiriido began picking up books at random, hoping to find one that would catch her interest, putting them away back into a pile if they didn't. Unfortunately, it was only now that she realised that she had somehow managed to read every last one of them within a few months. She pouted at the stack of books, before, on a whim, grabbing the one in the middle. As the book-tower collapsed, she looked at the title she had taken.

**_Danger in Disguise_ **

Hijiriido let out a laugh, a mixture of genuine amusement and nostalgic fondness.

"Damn... how did you get in here?" She asked, a humourous smile on her face. She'd read _The Nancy Drew Files_ when she was younger, and while now that she was an adult she could recognise the simplicity of its plot and characters, as well its hokey romance, they had a charm that had captivated her as a little girl and hadn't left since. 

_No wonder Mum's always calling me a kid when I walk around with stuff like this..._

Nonetheless, Hijiriido picked herself off the ground and set down on her bed. After kicking off her trainers and rolling off her tights, leaving her in just a vest and shorts, she rolled over, propping the book upon the pillow, and opened the first page, relishing in old, comforting smell of her childhood. These books might not be much to some people, but to her, they were a part of her. Their depictions of wild mysteries, thrills and romance filled her head with dreams of adventure, dreams of danger...

Dreams of being a Brilliant Detective.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Naruhito - Means "virtue, compassionate". Also the name of the current Japanese Emperor, the previous one being named "Akihito".
> 
> Kenzo - Means "healthy, strong, and three".


	2. Book³; or, Double Collisions

It took Anaido a few seconds to remember where he was when he woke up. Having spent over a year in a minimalist, featureless room had conditioned him to waking up surrounded by stark white. So when he woke up in a near pitch-black room in a dusty old bed with the springs digging into his back, he felt a very brief flash of panic strike him, before his eyes adjusted to the lighting and the familiarity of his surroundings set in. Groaning, he began to sit up, only to fall back onto the bed, tilting his head towards the window, squinting and the orange rays of light peeking in from between the blinds. It was probably around six, maybe seven AM. Why was he awake so early?

_Oh yeah. The shop._

With an almighty wheeze, Anaido managed to force his body out of bed and over to the window to draw the blinds, bathing the room in an easy orange. Stumbling over to the mirror, he stared slightly surprised at the gangly, atrophied man looking back at him. Sure, he'd always been tall, but he'd actually been fairly well-built before he was sent to the hospital. It seemed the many months wasting away in beds and chairs had taken their toll.

"Ehhhh... Maybe I should go to a gym," he wondered aloud, flexing experimentally and sniggering at his biceps, or lack thereof. Shaking his head, he turned to go wander into the bathroom, continuing to laugh at his biceps long after he had forgotten about them.

* * *

_Huh? That's odd..._

In front of Hijiriido was a two-story building that she had walked past several times before. It was an old, Western-styled construction, and stuck out like a sore thumb compared to the modernised buildings sandwiching it, or even the flat that was above it, which had clearly just been stuck on without any care for consistency. The large glass window displaying row upon row of shelves of books often teased Hijiriido as she walked past, but unfortunately, it had been shut ever since she'd arrived in the area a few months ago. She'd run her fingers along the wooden framing and try to peer through to see if anyone was in, or to try and see if she could read the titles of the books, but all she managed to gain from that were suspicious glances from strangers. The only thing she could read was the out-of-place sign that that presumably bore the name: _**Book³**_. 

Today though...

Hijiriido stepped inside, the spring chill giving way to a homey warmth. She was almost tempted to let out a gasp; it was as if she had been transported fifty years back. The room was bathed in the midday sunshine, the shades of brown glowing invitingly, almost as much as the seemingly endless amounts of books, all hardbound with leather.

_I can't begin to imagine how expensive all this is put together..._

Shrugging off her Inverness cape, leaving her in the same vest and shorts she'd slept in, and walked towards the counter, which was situated directly opposite the door. However, there was nobody sitting there, nor did there seem to be anyone nearby. 

"Hello?" Hijiriido said. No reply. Raising an eyebrow, she walked away to the right, hugging the wall as she admired the towering shelves. Then again, she'd always been on the short side, so perhaps it was just her perception of things. After passing the sixth shelve, she turned to continue down the path, only to stop dead in her tracks. There, sitting at a table squared away in the far corner, a red and gold bound in his hand, was a tall, spiry young man, with wild, unkempt blue hair. His slightly oversized button-up was covered in wrinkles, and his red boots were slightly dusty and stained as if they hadn't been worn in some time. He lent back in his chair, dangerously swinging back and forth, holding the book in his left hand casually, almost looking like he was about to drop it. And yet, his shambolic appearance belied an overt intellect; there was a calm, focused look on his face as his eyes darted back and forth, taking in page after page at a rapid pace. His easy, loose grin gave a sense of contentedness, and Hijiriido found herself just... staring at him, something about his form captivating her.

"Are you here to buy something, or am I really just that attractive?"

"Uh-! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare!" Hijiriido hurriedly said, jumping as the man snapped his book shut and turned his gaze towards her, his grin widening. "I was just walking past when I noticed the shop was... ahem, open. I went to the desk, but nobody was there."

"Ahh, I see," the man said as he rose to his feet and made his way over, Hijiriido only now realising just how much taller he was compared to her. "Well then, how can I help you, Miss?" Hijiriido felt the sudden urge to shiver at the sound of his low, dry voice, but instead returned his casual smile with one of her own.

"No need to call me that, I'm Miyo Hijiriido. I'm just looking for a new book to read. I've gone through everything in my collection."

"Ahaha... a pain I know all too well," the man chuckled, running his gaze up and down the shelve next to him. "Any particular tastes?"

"Well, something long would be preferable, something a bit more on the serious side, a good mystery as well!" Hijiriido said. "Have you got any detective fiction?"

"WHOA! You like detective fiction too!?" The man suddenly exclaimed, throwing his arms up in surprise. 

"U-Uhh, yeah!" Hijiriido stammered, so caught off guard that she had to step back, nearly dropping her cape.

"What a coincidence! I love detective fiction!" he said, holding up the cover of the book he had been reading.

"Oh, Sherlock Holmes, that's a classic. I'm looking for something a little more..."

"Yeah yeah, I get it. Everyone's read Holmes," the man agreed, shelving the book and running his finger along the spines. "Hmmmmm.... how's _Strange Tale of Panorama Island_ looking?"

"Ahh, that's an old one," Hijiriido said, smiling in remembrance. "But I'm afraid I've already read it."

"Oooo, a genre veteran! Okay then....." Turning back to the shelf, the man stood on his toes and pulled out a book from one of the higher sections. "How about _The Silent Patient_? It came out last year, quite the thriller..." Grinning, he glanced over at Hijiriido. "Though, it might be a bit too scary for you. Wouldn't want you getting nightmares on a school night."

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm eighteen!" Hijiriido protested, blushing at the man's laugher, suddenly extremely self-conscious about her appearance. 

"Sorry sorry, couldn't help it!" The man said, sniggering. "Eighteen huh? Now that's an interesting number. A bit out there, but very intriguing."

"Hmm? What does that mean?" Hijiriido asked. Immediately, the man's sniggers stopped, and his face suddenly tightened, like he'd been struck with a sudden flash of pain, before relaxing again. 

"Forget it, it's nothing," he said, shaking his head dismissively. "Eighteen huh...?" Nodding in contemplation, he seemed to come to a conclusion of sorts. "I guess you're a big girl, you could probably take it. Come on," he finished, walking past Hijiriiido, beckoning her to follow her. With an exasperated, bemused sigh, she followed him around the bookshelf into another row, finding him running his hands up and down one of the shelves, his hands and fingers moving in an oddly sensual manner, eventually coming to rest at one book in particular around his eye level. Pulling it out, he turned to Hijiriido and presented it to her.

_**House of Leaves** _

Immediately, the cover stood out to Hijiriido as she received it. It was black, with the title and the author's name printed in an off-white colour, with the exception of the word "House" which was a pale blue. The circuit-like markings leading to a spiral in the middle, but what caught her attention most of all was the fact that the cover seemed to be intentionally too small, not extending fair enough to cover the front page, which seemed to be a messy collage of odd, stained images. She flipped the book over to look at the blurb, only for the man's hand to cover it.

"Huh?"

"Go in blind. Trust me, I think you'll like it..." he said with an uneven grin that both unnerved Hijiriido yet seemed to draw her closer. 

"Is that so? I'll be disappointed if you're lying," she replied, a challenging smirk on her lips that only made the man's own grow wider.

"Well, that be all, or is there anything else I can help you with?" he asked, already making his way to the desk where the till was. 

"No, I think I'll just take this one for now," Hijiriido said, following him and sliding the book onto the counter.

"Oh, that eager to get out, huh?" The man half sarcastically remarked as he scanned the book, the price coming up on the card scanner. 

"The opposite actually!" Hijriiido said, pressing her card against it. "It actually gives me an excuse to come back here and talk to you."

"... what?" The man paused, about to hand the book back over to her when he froze, his face blank, seemingly unable to comprehend what she had just said.

"You're an interesting guy, and into books, like me! It'll be nice to have another book worm to chat too every once in awhile!" Hijiriido said, almost falling to her knees at the toothy, genuine smile that bloomed on the man's face. "Oh, I can't believe I didn't ask this before!" she said, the thought suddenly popping into her head. "What's your name?"

The man seemed to catch himself and reined in his massive smile, though it was no less genuine, his rosy cheeks and wide eyes conveying what he felt more than words could. 

"Kenzo. Kenzo Anaido. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

* * *

"Hmm? That's odd."

Sakaido stopped where he was and stared at the building across the street. _**Book³**_ : it was a bookshop that had opened a little over a year ago, only to suddenly close after a month or two and never open again. He'd seen the owner working through the windows as he walked past: a tall, blue-haired man in smart-casual wear, but he had seemingly disappeared when his shop closed. His girlfriend's gossiping friends had apparently told her that he had been hospitalised, though for what for he couldn't remember. He did, however, remember the name of the owner: Anaido, at least that's what he thought it was.

Now however, the sign stuck to the door that had displayed "closed" for over a year had finally been flipped around. What's more, from where he was standing, Sakaido could see someone at the till: a young girl it seemed, with Anaido himself behind it, presumably checking it out for her. Sakaido stood for a few moments, before eventually shrugging and crossing the road. 

_Ahh hell. It's been too long since I've read a decent book. Might take my mind off things._

After reaching the other side, Sakaido walked over to the door and lifted his arm to push it open, only for it to suddenly open, the girl he'd seen running out looking behind her.

"Goodbye, Anaido! I'll be back soOAAGHHH!" she said, turning around just in time to stop herself from smashing right into Sakaido's torso. 

"H-Hey! Careful!" Sakaido said, stumbling backwards to avoid her as the girl hurriedly walked past. 

"I'm really sorry sir! Stay safe!" she said, picking up speed as she jogged off down the street. 

"Jeez... kids, I swear..." Sakaido muttered, shaking his head as he walked through the still-ajar door.

"Actually, she's eighteen," Anaido said, still standing behind the till, all teeth and grins. "She was VERY adamant about that."

Sakaido raised an eyebrow. "That's an odd thing to focus on." he said, making his way over.

"Ahaha... I guess it does sound weird out of context..." Anaido admitted, walking around the desk to meet Sakaido in the middle. "But trust me, she's the one kept saying it, not me."

"Uh-huh." Now standing face to face, Sakaido looked Anaido up and down, taking note of his thin frame. "So... Anaido... where have you been this past year?"

"Wait, you remembered me?! People do care!" Anaido shouted, holding a hand to his heart with what had to be a purposefully over-the-top, sappy expression. Sakaido just stared at him, his face caught somewhere between annoyed and amused.

"I remember seeing you through the window. I heard you wound up in hospital."

Anaido's entire demeanour noticeably dropped, though he still managed to maintain a generally upbeat tone. 

"Yeah, tough time. But hey, I'm back in action, so, Mr....?"

"Sakaido."

"Sakaido! Well, I've got plenty of books, there's bound to be something to your tastes," Anaido said, spinning around and facing the row of shelves before them. "Any requests?"

"Well, it's been awhile since I've sat down and read something..."

"I see, I see..." Anaido said, eyes darting from book to book.

"So... maybe something a bit easy?"

"Easy huh.... hmmm," Anaido muttered, stepping forward and, after some deliberation, picked out something, showing it to Sakaido. "How's this?"

_**Paw Patrol and the Great Canine Mystery** _

For a brief moment, the two just stared at each other, neither moving an inch before Anaido suddenly cracked, letting out a loud snort before bursting out into a fit of laugher, all the while Sakaido looked on, his face flat and gaze detached. 

"..... Are you finished?" he eventually asked, long after Anaido had collapsed onto the floor, gasping at his apparently hilarious joke.

"Ye... Yeah just... ahaha...! Hold on just.... just lemme... hehehe..." he said, rising to his feet and trying to suppress his giggles. "Ahaha.. okay okay okay..." Slotting the book back in its place, he swept his hair back to make it slightly neater, and turned back to Sakaido, his face still flushed. "Out of curiosity, what do you do? For a job, I mean."

Narrowing his eyes slightly, Sakaido nonetheless answered with, "A police detective."

"A detective?! Whoa, you solve crimes?" Anaido asked, his constant smile wavering slightly when he noticed Sakaido's expression suddenly turn dark.

"That's what I'm supposed to do, yes..."

"Hmmm..." For a brief moment, Anaido considered asking a follow-up question, but decided against it. "Well, Mr. Detective, if you're looking for something easy, then you can't go wrong with the basics," he said, moving around the bookshelf to the back of the room, returning a few seconds later with a book, which he handed over.

_**A Study in Scarlet** _

"Isn't this the first Sherlock book?" Sakaido asked.

"Yeah yeah, I know it's pretty stereotypical, and maybe a bit dated, but I still think it holds up, especially as an introduction to the genre! Give it a shot; my recommendation," Anaido reassured him. Sakaido looked at the book for a few seconds long, then back at Anaido, before sighing.

"Sure, why not?" he said.

"Pleasure doing business with you," Anaido replied as he slid round back to the till, taking the book and scanning it in one swift motion. "Hey, uhh... so if you like the book, will you come again?" he asked, suddenly looking far more nervous than he had before, almost like a child asking someone to be his friend. 

"I suppose. I've been trying to get back into reading for awhile, but could never find something good. If it turns out your recommendations are good, I'd love to come back here," Sakaido said, scanning his card. Anaido slid the book back to him, sporting a more reserved smile than usual.

"Well, when you do come back, I'll be happy to help you pick out another," he said, extending his arm for a handshake. Sakaido looked at the man with an amused expression, before letting out a chuckle, gripping Anaido's hand with his own. "

"Yeah. You better not disappoint, Anaido..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ngl, it was kinda hard to write Sakaido and Anaido's interactions. Hopefully, I nailed their chemistry, and if not, hopefully I can get better at it in the future!


	3. Repetition; or, Fear of Losing Friends

Sakaido set the book down, rubbing his eyes. Suppressing a yawn, he reached over to his coffee and down the remaining dregs, nearly gagging at the ice-cold taste.

_Jesus... How long have I been reading?_

A quick glance at his watch told him that it was 8:42. He'd been reading for about two hours. He raised his eyebrows, slightly impressed with himself.

_Wow, and to think I haven't read anything other than reports in years... easier to get back into than I thought..._

Looking back at the book, Sakaido picked it up, feeling the weight of his in his hand as he lifted it up and down, soaking up its details. Despite the item being older than him, it was remarkably well preserved. If he hadn't checked the publishing date on the inside cover, he might have mistaken it for a recent republishing.

_Anaido must have done some spring cleaning when he got back. Either that, or his upkeep is just that good._

_Anyway, I've read enough. I need to make dinner._

Dropping the book on the table (making a mental note to put it in his bag later), Sakaido sat up and walked over to the cabinet, dumping his mug in the sink on his way. Opening it up, he ran his eyes over the contents, silently wondering what to cook for dinner.

_It'll have to be something quick, Ayako'll be coming home soon. She'll be hungry after that long shift..._

Running his hand up and down various items, Sakaido continued to ponder until he suddenly straightened his back and turned towards the table. _A Study in Scarlet_ was still there, and he could already feel the urge to pick it up and start over again from page one. Laughing quietly at himself, he pulled out some rice and fish, setting it down on the counter and rolling his sleeves up.

_Looks like I've been bitten. I'll have to go to Anaido's soon and get another one._

* * *

"Thanks for your patronage," Anaido said with a weary wave as the last customer of the day walked out the door. Stretching his back and wincing at the pops and cracks, he checked his watch with a quick flick of the wrist; long enough to see the numbers but short enough not to give them any thought.

"Hmm... 'bout fifteen minutes..." he noted, rubbing his fingers together as he thought. Technically he had until nine o'clock before he needed to close, but he was tired, and doubted that anyone would be out looking for a bookshop this late. Continuing to stretching as he did so, Anaido made his way over to the door.

"Mmm... for a first week back, I'd say that's not bad..." he muttered to himself. Indeed, while he was lucky to have more than two people in at once, considering he'd only been open for a few days before disappearing for a year, business was doing surprisingly well. Granted, it was going to be tight, but at least he wouldn't have to cut back on meals to pay bills.

"Maybe I'll have enough money to pay for a gym membership..." he wondered aloud, grabbing the sign tied to the window. He was about to flip it over when he suddenly noticed someone running across the road seemingly towards his shop. "Huh, I guess some people are just night... wait..." he trailed off as the person got closer, raising her arm to get his attention, a familiar book inner hand. Letting out a brief, humoured snort, Anaido dropped the sign and opened the door wide, standing back and letting Hijiriido stumble inside.

"Oh thank goodness! I was worried I might miss you!" She said, bending over to catch her breath. 

"You did cut it quite close, so I have to ask..." Anaido said, an amused look on his face as he let the door swing shut. "What was so important that you ran all the way here so late at night? Isn't it past your bedtime~?"

"If you want I could just leave!" Hijiriido shot back, missing Anaido's brief panicked expression as she showed him the book she was holding. "I can here to talk to you about this!"

"Oh, House of Leaves. Enjoying it so far?"

"Enjoying it? It's great! I've never read a book this... this... I don't know...! Avant-garde?" She exclaimed, excitedly flipping through pages. "I'd just finished reading it about ten minutes ago!"

"Wait, you read it in four days?" Anaido asked, impressed. "Don't you have school or something?"

"The terms just started, the workload's pretty easy!" Hijiriido said, before becoming mildly sheepish all of a sudden. "Also I... uhh... I may have stayed up a bit... later than I usually do..." Her face flushed red, only encouraged by Anaido's laughs.

"Ahaha! Ahh man, you remind me of when I was your age! Haha!" He chuckled, stabbing his fingers at her.

"Th-That's beside the point!" Hijiriido said, eager to change the subject. "The point is, you've got some great tastes, Anaido!"

"Flattery won't get you anywhere..." Anaido teased, walking past her further in. "So, I take it you're here for a new recommendation?"

"Yeah," Hijiriido confirmed, following him. "I was thinking about on the way here. Something out there like like Leaves is great, but I think I'm in the mood for some old fashioned detective fiction!"

"Glad to see I'm not the only one with taste," Anaido said, leading her around the towering bookcases. "Now to pi-" Hijiriido nearly bumped into him when he suddenly came to a halt.

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

"Speaking of detectives..." Anaido spoke, turning around with a snide grin. "A detective came in here a few days ago to buy a book."

"WHAT?! An actual detective!?" Hijiriido shouted, Anaido laughing at her bug-eyed expression "Is he coming back? Do you think I could meet him?"

"Actually, you've already met him," Anaido said, his grin narrowing into a mocking smirk. "If I recall, you nearly ran into him on your way out last time you were here."

Hijiriido took a moment to remember what he was referring to, but the moment she did, her features creased in embarrassment as she covered her face with her hands. 

"Oh my God... he wasn't..." she mumbled, saying that more to herself than Anaido, who, for his part, was at least kind enough to _try_ and not devolve into a mess of giggles.

"Don't lose your head," he reassured, flicking her cap off her head and leaving her scrambling to catch it. "He said he was coming back, so you can have a nice, long chat with him then..." Smiling at Hijiriido's pout, he turned and walked off, the young woman following him down the path leading to the table and chair she'd first seen him at. In an almost identical recreation of that day, Anaido stopped and ran his finger along the spines of the book, letting out a contented hum up until his finger came to a stop.

"Aha... I got this one just before I got sent to the hospital..." This comment caught Hijiriido's attention, and she was about to ask him to elaborate, only for him to speak before she had the chance.

"How's this for a try?" Anaido asked, holding out a moderately sized book, illustrated with a large, glowing glass bulb of sorts.

**_Detective Garireo_ **

At first, Hijiriido just blinked silently at the title, the gears silently turning in her head until everything clicked.

"Oh, Detective Garireo!"

"Yeah. A modern classic," Anaido said. "Honestly, not surprised you've already read it. But have you-?"

"Umm, actually, I've never actually read any of Garireo books..." Hijiriido admitted with an awkward smile.

"WHAT? Are you even Japanese?!" Anaido asked incredulously, his exaggerated, repetitive actions managing to bring a chuckle out of Hijiriido.

"Yeah... I've always been more into foreign works. My dad works a lot overseas and he sometimes brings me books back. Guess it left an impression on me."

"Huh... interesting guy, love to talk to him one day..." Anaido mused, ignoring Hijiriido's surprised expression. "Anyway, the first Garireo book is a pretty decent one, but trust me, each one is better than the last. By the time you get to the third?" Anaido made a chef's kiss. " _Magnifique_."

"Hmm, well, you seem to know what you're talking about..." Hijiriido pondered, reading over the blurb before coming to a decision. "Ahh, what the hell? Do you have the whole series?"

"Ahahaha! That's my favourite customer!" Anaido said, grabbing four other books off the shelf without even looking.

"Your favourite customer? Ahaha, a bit early for that isn't it?" Hijiriido said, moving over to the counter and placing the book onto it, ready to be scanned. "I mean, we barely know each other and you're already talking about meeting my dad? That's... uhhh..." she trailed off upon noticing that Anaido hadn't followed her. Caught off guard, she turned back, and was surprised to see that he seemingly hadn't even left the aisle. "Umm, Anaido?"

There was a shuffling sound, accompanied by an odd, dry sort of gulp before Anaido appeared from behind the shelf, his languished, smooth motions having suddenly become far more rigid as he speed-walked to the counter.

"Sorry, spaced out there for a second," he said, his lazy, familiar tone clashing with his stiff movements and unusually toothy grin as he swiftly scanned the five books.

"You... okay?" Hijiriido asked, absentmindedly scanning her card, far more focused on reading Anaido's body language.

"Hmm? Yeah, why?" he asked, shoving her books into a bag and handing it off to her. 

"Did I say-?"

"Come on, run off. It's Monday tomorrow, better be up bright and early."

For a moment, Hijiriido considered staying and probing him for more questions, but, after a glance at her watch told her that it was already a few minutes past ten, she reluctantly relented.

"Okay... I'll come back soon," she said, giving a short wave as she turned.

"Please do," Anaido said, only to suddenly cringe, almost as if in response to his own words. It was brief enough that although Hijiriido noticed, she just brushed it off with a slightly concerned smile as she exited the shop, flipping the sign around for him as she did so, slipping away into the dark. Anadio waited until she had completely vanished from sight before letting himself collapse onto the desk, his head falling into his hands.

"Mmmmmmmm...." he grumbled, a light frown set into his face. "Guess I might have come across a bit strong..." A small smile snuck its way onto him. "If only she'd come here yesterday. Three days afterwards would have been-"

Stopping in the middle of his sentence, Anaido suddenly stood up and, without warning, smashed his head into the desk. Raising back up, he nearly teetered over, his brain rattled as he turned and kicked the door to his flat upstairs, having already forgotten to turn off the lights or even lock the door.


	4. Neurodivergency; or, Instant Noodles

"Umm... excuse me, sir?"

Having heard the approaching footsteps, already questioning the motives behind the fast pace, Sakaido dumped the cup of instant noodles in his plastic bag and turned to face whoever was talking to him, surprised to find himself staring down at the girl he'd nearly smashed into at Anaido's bookshop; she was even wearing the exact same clothes. The only differences were the bag in her hand, similarly filled with cheap, "just-add-hot-water" food, and the half-sheepish, half-reverent expression on her face.

"I-umm, you wouldn't happen to be the man I bumped into last week at the book shop, would you?" She asked, to her credit at least attempting to act like she wasn't a desperate fangirl. Noticing this, Sakaido made a humoured expression.

"You wouldn't happen to be the girl who nearly put me in the hospital last week, would you?"

"Yeah, should have expected you'd remember..." she mumbled, more to herself it seemed. Regardless, Sakaido still answered.

"Well yeah, of course I would. You're even wearing the same clothes," he asked, grinning slightly as the girl became far more flushed and defensive. 

"I-! You don't-! You say it like it's a bad thing! You're wearing the same clothes too!" 

"What? No I'm-" Sakaido began, only to stop when he looked down and realised that he was, in fact, wearing the same clothes he had been last week, right down to his leggings. "Oh. Uh. Aha, guess I really can't nag you, can I?" " he laughed awkwardly, coinciding defeat.

"Yeah, well..." the girl said, suddenly appearing much older than she had before. "Anyways, I wanted to say that I'm sorry for nearly hitting you. I should have been more considerate."

"Nah, it's alright," Sakaido reassured her, only for her to keep going.

"I uhh, I also wanted to ask you, you're... not a detective, are you?" she asked, the excitement beginning to rise to the surface again, though far more reserved this time. Sakaido, for his part, subconsciously straightened his back and clenched his toes, his expression hardening slightly.

"Oh? Who told you that?" he asked, keeping his voice level, but noticeably dropping in tone. It wasn't like him to antagonise teenage girls, but experiences with a couple of vengeful criminals at left him a healthy dose of subconscious paranoia. Unfortunately, it seemed that the girl had noticed his change demeanour. However, to his surprise, the girl, rather than submitting and backing off, actually stepped forward and doubled down on what he was doing, seemingly enjoying the back and forth.

"Anaido told me," she said, an almost sly grin on her face. "I went there a few days ago."

"Huh, did he now?" Sakaido asked, thinking back to the thin, eccentric man. "How is he doing? Business alright for him?"

All of a sudden, the girl's entire attitude changed, her expression becoming far more pensive and concerned, surprising Sakaido.

"Is... something wrong?" 

"Uhh... I... Ugh, I suppose you could say that..." she admitted, giving a slightly forced smile, accompanied by a weak shrug. Sakaido looked her up and down briefly, then glanced outside at the setting sun.

"Well, let's talk about it outside," he said, giving a smile and holding up the bag of instant noodles. "Unless you'd rather stay inside with the pasta?" he joked, managing to bring a smile back to the girl's face. 

* * *

"So, Hijiriido..." Sakaido said, getting a feel for the name he'd just learned. "What do you think went wrong?" 

"I don't know," Hijiriido sighed, walking behind Sakaido slightly as the two made their way from the convenience store and further outside the main city towards the university. "He just started acting weird as I was checking out some books. One moment he was acting fine, and the next he was all stiff and awkward, like he couldn't wait for me to leave."

"Did you say anything beforehand? Anything that might make him act that way?"

"Hmm. I'm not sure. I mean, just before he got all weird - well, weirder - he called me his 'favourite customer', and spoke about wanting to meet my dad to talk about books."

"Oh sweet..." Sakaido said, halfway between a groan and a laugh. "So what did you say to that?"

"I basically said he was being a bit too familiar considering we really didn't know each other that well," Hijiriido explained, her brow twisted in thought. "But it's not like I was being rude or anything," she said, before turning to Sakaido for validation. "Was I?"

"And here I was thinking you were a promising little detective," Sakaido chuckled, rolling his eyes at Hijiriido's insulted expression.

"Hmph. You know I don't recall ever mentioning I even wanted to be a detective!" she protested, crossing her arms in a childish display of defiance.

"No. But your fangirling earlier completely gave you away."

"I... uhhh... ughhh..." Giving up, Hijiriido settled on glaring at the wall next to her, ignoring Sakaido's light-hearted laughs.

_This kid... can't tell if she's mature for her age or as childish as a grade-schooler. Still, she's clearly dedicated. Eager. Almost reminds me of when I started university..._

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you say you were studying criminal psychology?" he asked, partially as a way to avoid any train of thought that might lead back to his job.

"Hmm? Yeah, why?"

"Well, not saying that Anaido's a criminal, but as a detective, you get used to reading people at a glance, looking at their mannerisms, their wardrobe etcetera," Sakaido explained. "For example, you're someone who generally acts fairly mature for her age, but the way you dress and how you behave when you get flustered or caught off guard shows that you can be quite childish. Perhaps you've been told that you're too immature and adopted that mature act as a response?"

".... yeah, I've got a lot to learn..." Hijiriido confessed, admittedly impressed and mildly uncomfortable with his deductions. "I suppose what you're gonna say next is that I need to read Anaido more?" she asked as the two stopped at a red light.

"Exactly," Sakaido confirmed. "Anaido is... well... he's not exactly.... uhh..." Rubbing his chin, Sakaido narrowed his eyes, trying to find a way to word what he was attempting to convey. "He's... not like most other people," he eventually settled on, leading Hijiriido across the road as the green light turned on. "I think Anaido's someone who finds it hard to empathise with other people, somewhat like you, in a different way."

"Wait, what do you mean? Are you calling me a psychopath?" Hijiriido asked, eyebrow raised, slightly fearful of his answer.

"No, but given that you need to ask me what you said wrong, I'm guessing you have a hard time putting yourself in other people's shoes," Sakaido said.

"Hmmm." Hijiriido dwelled on his words for a few moments. She'd never been a particularly introspective person, but perhaps it was time she looked in the mirror for once. Regardless, she drew the conversation back to its intended topic. "So, because Anaido couldn't empathise with me, he.... took it the wrong way?"

"Well, maybe empathise is the wrong word," Sakaido said. "Perhaps, 'understand' might be better. He might find it hard to figure out what people are really thinking, but I think he really does want to connect with people. Honestly, he comes across as someone whose desperate for companionship." Sakaido let the statement hang in the air for awhile, expecting Hijiriido to comment on it, but instead, she remained silent, her lips pressed tight together. Letting out a small sigh, he carried on.

"I don't know the guy's past, but I don't think he's had many friends before. The reason he acted so chummy with you was probably because he thought that was just how friends talked to each other. So when you told him to back off, he probably overthought things way too much and took it as a rejection."

".... a rejection?" Hijiriido mumbled, thinking back to the uncomfortable expression that Anaido made when he told her to come again. "I think... I think Anaido might be a bit more self-aware than you give him credit for."

"Oh?"

"I think he does, to some degree, know that the way he acts isn't really normal. Maybe it doesn't mean much, but sometimes I get the feeling that he's wrestling with himself, holding himself back from doing something."

"Hmm. Is that so?" Sakaido mused, his tone soft and airy, before noticing something and giving a small smile and grabbing Hijiriido by the shoulder, stopping her from walking off. "Well, we'll have to continue our discussion another day." Hijiriido looked at him confused, until she realised they were right outside the gates of her university. 

"Oh, right," she said, turning back to Sakaido. "Thank you for walking me back, you really didn't have do." Sakaido waved his hand dismissively.

"It's fine, I don't live too far away, won't be that much of a backtrack. Besides, can't let a kid walk back by herself at this time of night," he said, grinning as Hijiriido's ego predictably flared up.

"I swear, all you guys are the same," she bemoaned, crossing her arms disapprovingly. 

"Oh yeah, forgot. You're eighteen. My apologies."

"I-what?! How'd you know my age? Are you that good of a detective?!" Hijiriido said, stepping away as her face paled.

"No no, Anaido told me!" Sakaido quickly reassured her, unable to stop himself laughing a bit at her expense. Hijiriido stared at him, slightly exasperated, but was unable to stop a smile forming.

"Jeez... what am I going to do with that guy?" she sighed, shaking her head in amusement, before looking back up at Sakaido. "Um, I know we've basically just met, but, would it be possible to talk with you again sometime? I know it ironic to say something like that, I'd be silly not to take up the opportunity to talk with a real detective!"

"Aha, don't worry, I can't blame you," Sakaido said, trying to cover up the fact that mentioning his job had instantly zapped all his energy and interest in the conversation. "How about I give you my email? If you wanna ask any questions, I'll try and answer them as well as I can. Can't promise a speedy response though!" 

"No, that would be perfect! Thank you!" Hijiriido said, her attitude clashing with how Sakaido felt inside. "Oh, and thanks for your talk about Anaido. I think I have a better idea of what to do when I see him next."

"Great," Sakaiod nodded. "I'll probably stop by at some point soon myself. Maybe I'll see you then."

It was only after the two had exchanged email addresses and waved goodbye did Sakaido finally let his face fall and his posture sink, rubbing the bridge of his nose and letting out a deep sigh.

_Poor kid. She'd make a brilliant detective. And she's so eager too... Shit, she'll get a rude awakening when she graduates._

Resisting the urge to look back, Sakaido ground his teeth and picked up his pace. It was far too late to be thinking about this. Dwell on it much longer, and he knew he'd be getting no sleep tonight.

* * *

"AAACCCHHHoooo...." Anaido sneezed, the sudden jolt forcing him out of the stupor he'd been in up to that point. Briefly forgetting where he was, Anaido looked around the living room, the plain walls reminding him that he needed to put something up to break the monotony. Maybe a picture.

"Aha! Not like there's much around here to take a picture of..." he drawled, turning his attention back to the cup of instant noodles squished between his thighs. Staring at the cup for a moment, he grimaced, before downing the rest of the salty sludge, shuddering at the congealed texture. "Ehhhhgggg... need to start buying better food... but it's so expensive... I've already paid for the gym..." Continuing to mutter to himself, Anaido rose to his feet, flicked the lights off and, almost on autopilot, stumbled into his bedroom. Collapsing onto the bed, still fully clothed, he rolled over and looked at the digital clock on his bedside.

_**20:00** _

"8 o'clock huh?" he mumbled, blinking absent-mindedly at the digits. "Eight, huh. Eiiiiiiiiight....." 

**_20:01_ **

Anaido flinched as the digit suddenly changed. Then, in one swift motion, he rolled over, fell onto the floor, reached up and grabbed the clock before tossing it under the bed, the small, orange rectangle bouncing about for coming to a stop, the neon green numbers still glaring at him, searing their image into his mind's eye. Gritting his teeth, Anaido scrambled to his bed and dove under the covers, forcing his head underneath the pillow in an effort to hold off what he feared was inevitable. 

"It's fine... It's fine... It's FUCKing fine..." Anaido repeated, his temper spiking for a brief moment before just as quickly crashing back down. Closing his eyes, Anaido forced his breathing to slow down, remembering his doctor's instructions.

_In through the nose... out through the mouth... in through the nose... out through the mouth..._

It took time, but eventually, he was able to calm himself down enough that he felt comfortable pulling his head out and placing it on the pillow properly. Consciously keeping up the rhythm of his breathing, Anaido eventually drifted off to sleep, finding himself truly at ease for the first time all day.


	5. Fruit; or, Cracks in the Mask

Peering out of the large window of Book³, Anaido craned his neck up towards the sky, peeking between his fingers as he observed the sun beating down on the shop from almost directly above it, no clouds in sight to shield the world below from the rays. His eyes starting to hurt, Anaido pulled back, rubbing his eyes and retreating back to his desk.

"Hmm... looks like... early afternoon?" he asked himself, crashing down onto his chair and kicking his feet up. Reaching over to his new fruit bowl, he deliberated for a moment, before grabbing a polished red apple. "I'd say it's time for a mid-day snack." Taking a massive bite of the apple, Anaido struggled slightly before ripping a large chunk of flesh out, sending juice flying everywhere and almost causing him to tip over. Fluids dribbling down his chin, he slowly chewed as he looked back at the apple, realising that he had bitten out so much he could see all the way into the core, exposing the seeds. Stopping, he probed the inside of his mouth with his tongue, but after not feeling anything that would warrant concern, carried on chewing. Crisis averted, Anaido leant back again, staring up at the ceiling, the smooth brown surface staring back at him in turn. 

Eventually swallowing what he had in his mouth, Anaido took another bite, this time making sure to take a smaller bite. Remembering the juice on his chin, he wiped his mouth with his sleeve, which he then wiped against his trousers. Noticing a small piece of skin stuck between his teeth, he poked at it with his tongue unsuccessfully, before giving up and scraping it out with his fingernail, swallowing it along with everything else.

Sighing hard though his nose, Anaido flicked his gaze downwards towards the door. Closed. Looking a little to the left, through the window, there didn't seem to be anyone even coming his way. With an audible groan, he closed his eyes and tilted his head back further, detaching himself from his body, mind, and thoughts, drowning in absence in an attempt to speed up time.

_....._

_....._

_....._

_"Your favourite customer? Ahaha, a bit early for that isn't it?"_

Anaido's body suddenly spasmed, his hands shooting to his head and his legs jerking towards him, his boots leaving marks on the desk as he seemingly attempted to fold in on himself. Inhaling sharply, Anaido forced himself to freeze, fighting the urge to lash out and break something.

_In... Out... In... Out..._

After a few moments of deep breathing, he slowly straightened out, his feet touching the floor and his elbows resting on the desk, his hands cradling his head, tangling his hair with his fingers.

"Uhhhhhhhh... when did she even last show up? I haven't seen her in days."

"Who are you talking about?"

"Come on, isn't it obvious!" Anaido lifted his head, not skipping a beat as his internal conflict was swiftly covered up by a wry smirk and easy, open body language as he rose to his feet. "I was talking about my delivery lady. She's almost a week late! Can you believe that?!"

Sakaido, who'd only just entered the shop, shoved his phone in his pocket, subtly looking Anaido up and down. "Yeah, that sounds like a problem."

_Hm. Looks a bit broader. At least he's been eating properly, that's good. But where did that bruise on his forehead come from? It's pretty faint, might have gotten it... a week ago? Maybe a few days? Did he walk into something? Trip? He does seem like the absent-minded type after all._

"So, are you gonna ask me for my e-mail, or just keep checking me out? Either way, I'm game."

"I-Wh-I... N-No, I'm sorry, just a habit..." Sakaido hurriedly said, half embarrassed that he'd been caught profiling, and half impressed that he was even caught in the first place.

_Okay... forget the "absent-minded" part and replace it with "gay"._

"Ahaha! No worries, Detective Sakaido..." Anaido replied, grinning at Sakaido's attempts to regain his composure. 

"No need to call me that! Just Sakaido is fine."

"Well then, ~Sakaido~," Anaido said, placing his hand on the desk and leaning forward to that the two were level with each other. "How may I be of service?"

"I'm just here to get a new book, I've finished the one I bought last time." Following Anaido's arm down to the desk, Sakaido's eyes landed on the fruit bowl, filled with a mixture of apples, pears and oranges. "Nice bowl. When'd you get that?" he asked, almost reflexively.

"This? I got it a few days ago. I've started working out again, and part of having a healthy body is eating healthy food, right? Besides, I haven't really eaten any fruit for awhile, so I should probably get into the habit anyway."

"They wouldn't give you fruit at hospital? That sounds strange."

Anaido's smile tugged at the end slightly, a detail that Sakaido didn't miss.

"Well... in their defence, I could be a pretty unruly patient. You wouldn't believe it, hahaha!"

"Sounds intense. What were you in for?" 

Anaido lifted his hand and leaned back so he was once again towering over Sakaido, his smile now thin and humourless.

"Oh, it's a miserable story. Why would you want to hear about that when we need to find you a new book, _Detective?_ "

".... You're right. Sorry, I shouldn't pry, it's your business," Sakaido apologised, bowing his head slightly. Caught off guard by this, Anaido fidgeted awkwardly, before coughing and moving around the desk. 

"Nah, it's alright! Should have expected such from a brilliant detective such as yourself!" he said, his grin returning to a lesser degree.

"You sure like detectives, don't you, Anaido?" Sakaido asked, the word 'detective' starting to make him sick.

"Yeah! It was my dream to be one when I was a kid! Yeah, if only..." Anaido said wistfully, before spinning on his heel and walking down between the shelves. Sakaido considered asking what 'if only' meant, but decided against it, and followed Anaido.

"I enjoyed the Sherlock book a lot," he began, as Anaido already started taking out books and putting them back. "But I think I'd interested in something else this time, something... aha, I don't know, fantastical?" Intrigued, Anaido turned his head towards him, his hand still resting on the book shelve.

"Fantasy, huh? Have to say, wasn't expecting that."

"I have a stressful job, I'm all about escapism," Sakaido said with a shrug and a loose smile.

"Hmmm..." Anaido tilted his head slightly, copying Sakaido's expression as his hand moved up a shelf and pulled a book out. "Well, why don't we have a look at this one?"

**_The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger_ **

"Oh?" Taking the book, Sakaido examined the cover for a moment, before flipping it over and reading the blurb. "I've heard of this, isn't this a Steven King book?"

"No, it's a Steven King _series_!" Anaido specified. "I think it'll be a decent entry point for you. It can be a little dark at times, but I'm assuming that you won't have a problem with that, right?" he asked with a mildly suggestive tone. 

"Hmph, I suppose you could say that." Giving a small smirk back, Sakaido looked at the cover one last time, before nodding to himself and stepping out from between the shelves towards the desk. "I think I'll give this a shot. Who knows? Might even come back for the whole series later." 

"That's what I like to hear." Rounding the desk, Anaido scanned the book, which Sakaido promptly paid for, and after a few moments, handed it back. "Enjoy!"

"Thanks," Sakaido said, giving a friendly nod as he turned away.

"Hey, Sakaido. Wait."

"Hmm." Sakaido turned back. "What is it?"

"I was just wondering... do you mind... uhh, I mean... aha." Though he started speaking with his usual casual attitude, Anaido's composure rapidly devolved as he struggled to explain himself. Concerned, Sakaido returned to the desk.

"Is... something wrong?"

"No, what?! Nothing's wrong!" Anaido assured him, his face turning red at an almost impressive rate. "I was just going to ask you something, but forget it."

"Why?"

"Why?" Anaido repeated, scratching his neck in an unusually nervous manner. "Well... it wasn't really... appropriate. We don't really... know each other, do we?" he eventually said, gesturing at the space between them, his eyeline wondering around, trying to desperately look at anything other than the man in front of him. "So you can just go and forget that I even said anything. You don't even have to come back if you-"

"Anaido."

"Hmm?!" His rambling coming to a halt, Anaido finally looked Sakaido in the eye, his rough, unnatural facade a stark contrast to the detective's small, understanding simper.

"It's alright. Just say it."

Anaido swallowed heavily, unsure as how to take this unfamiliar response, but, after another look at Sakaido's expression, gave an exhausted, weary smile.

"I'm a... pretty unlikeable person, right?" he said, the words coming across more as a statement than an actual question as his gaze started to drift away again. Sakaido nonetheless answered.

"Well, you're certainly a very.... uh, unique person, and can come across a bit strong. But hey, you're not a bad person. I like you fine enough."

"Ah." Anaido said, his face oddly pensive and conflicted, as if he'd expected Sakaido to affirm what he'd said. "Ahaha, that's... umm. Nice to hear," he finished, an unsure smile starting to form. Noticing his apprehension, Sakaido gave him one last push.

"It's not just me. I'm pretty sure Hijiriido likes you too," he said, letting out a little chuckle at Anaido's wide-eyed look.

"Wait, you know Hijiriido?!" he exclaimed, his familiar energy finally starting to return, much to Sakaido's relief. "Dude, that's awesome! I told her about you! When did you guys meet?"

"About two days ago at a store. She was quite the fangirl," Sakaido said, letting an out another short laugh as he remembered her starstruck expression when she'd first seen him.

"Two days? No wonder, that's a great number! But are you sure she isn't mad about me being all... well, you know?" Hearing the worry begin to seep into Anaido's voice, Sakaido was quick to stamp it out. 

"Don't worry, she'll probably be back soon. I'm sure of it." 

"Well, if you're sure," Anaido said, his demeanour finally matching that of the eccentric, irritatingly charming man he'd met over a week ago. "Hey, sorry to dump this all on you, I know we're still basically strangers."

"Well, this certainly has been an odd experience," Sakaido admitted. "But I doubt you could call us strangers anymore. Personally, I think this could be the start of a friendship. I could use some of those right now."

"Yeah, same."

"Well, as much as I'd love to hug it out, I should probably get back. My girlfriend and I are-" Sakaido's sentence died in his throat when he looked at his watch.

**_1:34_ **

"SHIT!" Pulling his phone out of his pocket and nearly dropping it in the process, Sakaido rapidly tapped the screen to find two missed calls and several text messages asking where he was. "I uhh... I'll see you later, Anaido, I need... uhh... bye!" he spluttered as he stormed over to the door, yanked it open and practically threw himself into the street, breaking into a sprint the moment his feet touched the pavement, his book still clutched in his hand as he dodged the poor pedestrians in his path, leaving Anaido by himself in Book³, bent over his desk and bawling with laugher.


	6. New Days; or, Let Me Out

_**19:00** _

Hijiriido jumped slightly as her watch beeped loudly, signalling the next hour. Looking from her laptop to her wrist, her eyebrows rose slightly.

"Huh. Is it that late already?" Looking out the window in front of her, she was somewhat surprised to see the sky was still an impressive royal blue, arguably more so than when she woke up.

_Guess it is spring after all. Maybe I can finally stop wearing my coat._

Letting out a deep sigh, Hijiiido slumped back in her chair, rubbing her eyes, which were strained beyond belief. Eventually, she mustered up the strength to look back at her essay.

"Just five hundred more words... just five hundred more words," she told herself.

_So close, but I'm so burnt out._

Slapping the lid of the device down, Hijiriido spun around in her chair, wondering what she should do to unwind before she was facing back towards the desk, her eyes landing on a pile of books lent right up underneath the window behind the laptop, one of them with a bookmark sticking out roughly halfway through.

_Maybe I should read for a bit. Still haven't even finished the first book in the series._

_...._

_I hope Anaido's okay. Haven't seen him in awhile._

Groaning, she pushed the laptop aside and lent on the desk, resting her head on his crossed arms as she gazed wistfully at the books.

_Looking back on it, Mr. Sakaido does have a point... Anaido IS a little... different. I still don't really get what I did wrong, but maybe that's what he was talking about. Maybe I should look at things from his perspective. I guess that would be a useful skill for a detective to have!_

After a few more moments caught up in her own thoughts, Hijriiido stood up, a determined expression on her face. After taking another look outside, she slipped on a worn pair of trainers and ran out, leaving her hat and cape behind. After all, in that heat, they would hardly be needed.

* * *

Anaido let out an impressed whistle as the rain splattered ruthlessly against his window, watching various pedestrians run past his shop, taking a special interest in those who had clearly seen the hot weather earlier and taken it as an opportunity to 'let loose' a bit. Said people were now soaked to the bone, what little clothes they had almost see-through as they sprinted about trying to escape the rain, unaware of the shop-keeper leering at them with an amused stare. 

"Mm, to be fair, the forecast did say it was supposed to be sunny all day." Anaido looked up at the gray, restless clouds, blocking his view of the sun which had been clearly visible less than half an hour ago. There was a brief flash of light from somewhere deep in the storm, soon followed by a deep, rumbling clap of thunder. 

_Ooo, the fourth one. Not a good-_

Slapping himself across the face, Anaido pressed his lips together in irritation, and was about to turn back when he noticed someone across the street running harder than anyone else around her, dressed in nothing but a vest and shorts, tights and trainers, all of which were no doubt thoroughly soaked. Letting out a snort, Anaido watched her, his smirk turning into a frown when the girl stopped at the zebra crossing and legged it across the road, waving her arms frantically and pointing at the door to the shop.

* * *

"ACHOO!"

"Tsk tsk tsk. I thought a big girl like you would know better than to go playing in the rain without a raincoat," Anaido chided playfully, handing Hijiriido a steaming cup of tea, which she graciously accepted, hurriedly wrapping her freezing, still-damp hands around it as she leant back into the sofa.

"I'm only going to ignore that because you're being nice." Readjusting the towel on her head, Hijiriido took a sip of the tea, cringing slightly at the taste. "No sugar?"

"Nah, I'm trying to go all healthy; put on a bit of muscle," he said, rolling one of his shoulders back as he glanced out the window. The blinds had been pulled back, letting him see the rain droplets crashing against the glass.

"Fair enough." Hijiriido took another, equally uncomfortable sip, before looking back up at Anaido, still standing over her. "Can't say I'm really used to it though..."

"If you want, I could buy some for you, so you can have some next time you come over."

Hijiriido didn't say anything at first, and Anaido began debating the pros and cons of dumping the remaining hot water over his head.

"The shop. I meant the shop. That's what I meant. Not my-"

Ah, aha, don't worry, I get it," Hijiriido reassured him, her face starting to turn red, though whether that was from the tea or genuine embarrassment. Not really wanting to know, Anaido backed off and sat down on the armchair, rolling up his sleeves in an attempt to try and alleviate the sudden heat.

"This is a nice place, Anaido," Hijiriido said in a transparent attempt to alleviate the tension. "Did you move in recently?"

"Actually, I've first got here about a year ago."

"Wait, really?" Hijiriido asked, looking around the plain room somewhat incredulously. "Are you a minimalist?"

"Ahaha! No way," Anaido laughed. "I was only here for a few months before I had to leave." This caught Hijiriido's attention, forgetting about the room and focusing on Anaido.

"Really? You did mention the hospital once, were you in an accident?" she asked. Anaido's hand, which up to that point had been holding up his head as he leant against the arm of the chair, suddenly gripped his hair tightly, something Hijiriido noticed despite his obvious attempt to hide it.

"Yeah, I uh, yeah I was. Got pretty messed up," he said, his voice somewhat strained and hoarse despite his soft smile.

"What happened?"

Anaido audibly swallowed, before letting out a nonchalant chuckle.

"Ahaha! You should have seen it, I was trying to move the shelves when one of them fell right on me! The delivery lady nearly pissed herself!"

"Ah...? Ahaha..." Hijiriido didn't believe him for a second, but she could tell that any further questioning would probably result in him tearing out his hair. "Well, that explains why I didn't see you up until about two weeks ago."

".... yeah," Anaido said, letting out a deep breath, finally relaxing. "Has it already been that long? Two weeks..."

"Well, getting there..."

"Huh..." Thinking back to their last encounter in his shop, Anaido's shoulders sagged as he groaned, looking over at Hijiriido. "Hey, listen. I'm sorry about me being so-"

"It's okay."

".... huh?"

"I... I spoke with Mr. Sakaido. The detective," Hijiriido began, keeping her eyes locked with Anaido's. "We talked a bit about you, and I feel like I know you better, Anaido." The man in question said nothing, his expression mildly confused, but keeping her gaze regardless. "I know that you're... uhh... not the best at interacting with people, and you can be a little weird sometimes, but that's alright! Ugh, sorry. What I mean to say is-"

"Oh, the sun's back out."

"What?" Looking over to her left, Hijriiido realised that the rain has actually stopped a little while ago. Through the window, she could see the clouds had dissipated, once again allowing the sun to shine through. The sky, which had been pure blue earlier, was now an almost painterly mix of oranges, yellows and reds. It was beautiful.

"I know I'm weird," Anaido said, enraptured by the sky. "It's fine. You can say it. I'm used to it now." He looked back at Hijiriido with a confident, yet melancholic smile and shrugged. "It's no big deal."

"Maybe, but... I still like you, Anaido." Hijiriido shuffled along to the end of the sofa so she was closer to him. "I was just caught off guard, that's it. Now that we're friends, it's alright for you to be yourself, right?"

"... friends?"

"Yeah. I mean, unless you usually invite strangers into your house!"

"Ahaha! Can't say I do!" Anaido looked away for a moment, starting to feel overwhelmed. After calming himself down a bit, he leant back in his chair, letting out a contented sigh. "You, Sakaido... what's with you guys? Why are you so cool?"

"Come on! We're detectives! Of course we'd be a bit more observant than most other people!" Hijiriido said, crossing her legs and sitting up in pride.

"Detective-in-training, you mean?"

"Hey! Don't have to be a jerk about it!" Hijriido protested, her ears turning red at Anaido's laughter before she suddenly remembered something. "Oh my gosh, I nearly forgot!" Placing her lukewarm tea on the coffee table, she pulled her phone out of her uncomfortably moist pocket. "I need to ask Mr. Sakaido a question!"

"Whoa! You've got his number!" Anaido exclaimed. "To think he'd be cheating with a university student of all people!"

"He's not cheating and I don't have his number! I just wanted to send him an email about an essay I have to do."

"Oh?" Interested, Anaido got up from his chair and lent against the wall next to the end of the sofa, watching as Hijiriido typed her message.

"I'm almost finished with it, but I've got a couple days before I need to hand it in. I'd be silly not to take advantage of him! Imagine what he's doing now! Probably on the verge of cracking a top-secret murder case! Hope I'm not interrupting him."

* * *

"You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Yes. Take a seat, Sakaido."

Shutting the door behind him, Sakaido kept a blank expression as he walked forward, feeling each second drag as he pulled the chair out and sat down, squinting his eyes in the face of the evening sunlight streaming through the window, which still had rain droplets stuck to it. Move further back and he'd be too far away to have a proper conversation, and the window was so large that there was no point in moving it forward again. Sakaido wondered not for the first time if the Chief had deliberately placed his desk in front of the window just to make people uncomfortable. That, or he just enjoyed the intimidating silhouette it created. To this day, Sakaido wasn't sure if his eyes were red or just an odd shade of brown.

"I trust you understand why you're here," Hirohito Uraido asked, resting his chin on his clasped hands. 

"I take it I'm not getting a pay rise?" 

"Ha, good to see your infectious spirit hasn't left you," Uraido said, his deliberately forced tone implying the exact opposite. "Unfortunately, it appears that your respect for your superiors has."

"Sir?" Sakaido frowned, the alarms in his head ringing full blast, having already been on high alert the moment he was summoned.

"I believe I gave you specific instructions to not to continue investigating the Hayaseura Case." 

Sakaido clenched his jaw slightly, a reflex he regretted when Uraido's gaze lowered for a brief moment. He'd seen. 

"Hmph. You really do wear your heart on your sleeve, Detective." His lips twitched slightly underneath his moustache, a deliberate move on his part designed to infuriate the man opposite.

"With all due respect sir," Sakaido began, taking care to make sure his voice was level and neutral in tone. "What I do in my spare time is none of your business."

"Sakaido..." Uraido shook his head, playing up his exasperation. "You know I think very highly of you. Despite your young age, you've proven yourself a brilliant detective, a league above most others. You remind me so much of myself when I was your age."

Sakaido clenched his toes, his leather shoes making a slight squeak. Uraido responded by lowering his hands to the desk and sitting up straight, tilting his head up marginally so that he was ever so slightly looking down his nose.

"Thanks, Chief. But, at the risk of sounding rude, if you think I'm so talented, then why won't you let me try and solve the case?"

"Because, the department is currently overwhelmed with an influx of new cases, courtesy of the sudden increase in gang violence, as you are no doubt aware. I need a brilliant detective such as yourself to help us sift through them all."

"But I-"

"Rest assured, Sakaido. I have no intention of abandoning these cases. I'm just putting them on hold for now while we work on these new cases. Besides, as I understand it, you haven't made any progress for months."

"If you would let me have access to existing evidence and funding, I might be able to-!"

"Sakaido."

Sakaido stopped, realising he had at some point gotten to his feet. 

".... I'm sorry," he said, about to sit down, only for Uraido to hold up his hand.

"It's alright. I understand your sense of duty is a strong one. These feelings you have aren't wrong. Keep them close to you, it ensures you don't stray from our righteous path."

"....."

"Go home for the night."

"But I still have an-"

"It's fine. _I insist_."

The two stared each other down, waiting to see who would make the first move, before Sakaido exhaled harshly, coinciding defeat.

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," he said, bowing his head slightly as he turned and walked back to the door.

"I do understand you, Sakaido," Uraido said, stopping Sakaido as he placed his hand on the door handle. "I was very much like you when I was younger. Eager and full of energy, but always held back by my superiors." Sakaido looked over his shoulder at Uraido's face, the rapidly dimming sunlight drenching it in a dark shadow.

"I was furious at the time. But eventually, I came to understand things from their perspective, understand the things they were doing. If you're ever feeling confused and need someone to talk to about your future, I'll be here."

Sakaido stood there silently, feeling as if some vague line had been crossed, but unsure as to which one. After an awkward couple of seconds, he opened the door and walked out, shuffling down the hallway with the odd sensation that he needed a shower.

As he made his way to the locker room, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and scrolled through his notification, still slightly edgy. A message from Ayako telling him that she'd be doing another night shift, an email from his gym promoting something, and...

"Hmm? What's this?" Clicking on the third notification from someone called "Brilliant Detective Miyo", he stopped in the middle of the hallway to type in his pin, the email soon coming up on the screen.

> **_Help with an essay please!_ **
> 
> _**Brilliant Detective Miyo!** 19:45 _ _to me_
> 
> _Hello Mr. Sakaido~! It's me, Hijiriido, remember? (・_・;) I hope I'm not interrupting you or anything! >.< _
> 
> _It's just that I'm writing an essay about the link between crime and social classes and I thought it would be nice if I could have your thoughts on the topic as a real police officer, please! _(._.)__
> 
> _It's okay if you're late, the essay isn't due until Tuesday, just thought I should ask you now in case <`～´>_
> 
> _Thank you!! Hope we can talk later? (^.^)/~~~_
> 
> _P.S I made up with Fukuda!! Thanks for the talk about him, I think we're proper friends now! ＼(^o^)／_

"Oh my god!" Covering his mouth, Sakaido looked around to make sure there was nobody around to hear him. Nonetheless, he did his best to stop himself from bursting into fit of giggles, as he resumed his walk, rereading the message.

_Jeez, you'd think she's a different person the way she types! That girl is... well, a girl, definitely! Is this how she usually talks, and she was just trying to look mature in front of me? Or maybe I was right, and she is secretly really childish?_

"Hijiriido, you are something else..." With a broad smile, he began typing a replay, the ordeal with Uradio already a distant thought at the back on his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hirohito - Abundant benevolence.
> 
> The subtitle (Let Me Out) comes from the song "Let Me Out" by Gorillaz ft. Pusha T and Mavis Staples, which I was listening to when writing the second third of the chapter.


	7. Familiarity; or, Let Me Out II

"Here, I found this book about body language. Bit out of date, but hey, who's counting?" Anaido said, plopping the book onto the coffee table next to Hijiriido's laptop.

"Thanks, you're a lifesaver." The clicks of frantic typing stopped briefly as Hijiriido picked up the book and added it to the pile next to her, which was already teetering on the brink of collapse as it was. Turning back to her laptop, Hijiriido resumed her work as Anaido looked on at the chaotic scene with amusement. The centre of the living room was now dominated by books, the coffee table overflowing discarded literature, in addition to the broad, black laptop which Hijiriiod was sitting in front of, propped up by a pillow and flanked by a pile of books that she had yet to go through, the one she was presently flipping through next to the laptop. With a nostalgic grin, Anaido stepped away and fell into his armchair.

"Ahhh... lemme know if you need anything else," he said as he sank into the cushions. Hijiriido let out an appreciative hum in response, her eyes darting from the screen to the open book next to it. Smiling, Anaido watched her work, enjoying the subtle changes in her expression until he noticed her lower legs sticking out from the other side of the coffee table. Raising an eyebrow, he watched as Hijriido began kicking her feet up and down, like a child swinging on a chair too big for them.

_One, two, three, four, five, six, se-_

Discreetly pinching his hand, Anaido quickly scanned the room for something else to look at, eventually landing on the window opposite him. Through it, he could see the sun gradually approaching the skyline, tempting him to check what time it was, a train of through that eventually lead him back to Hijiriido.

"Remind me: why are you here again?" Hijriido's typing stopped for a moment as she glanced over at him, before resuming at a slightly slower pace.

"Well, I've already gone through all the books at the university library, and I need more sources if I wanna push my mark up. I figured you'd have at least a few, but I didn't expect this treasure trove." Finally shutting the book, she pushed it further along the table, absentmindedly shoving several more books off the coffee table, and grabbed a new one from the pile. Anaido's eyes were glued to the tower as it rocked back and forth, wondering if the weight of all the books combined would be enough to crush her, but thankfully it settled back down again.

"Ah huh. So. How long are you planning on staying?" Hijiriido gave a small smirk.

"Why? Getting sick of me already?"

"Pfff, as if!" Anaido said, crossing his legs. "I'm just curious as to why you have so much free time to spend in an older man's house." Predictably, this produced a flustered reaction as Hijiriido tore her eyes from the laptop to Anaido, a blush spreading at an impressive pace.

"Don't say it like that! You make it sound so... ugh!"

"Ah come on! Don't tell me the implication hasn't crossed your mind~?" Anaido asked, garnishing the statement with a suggestive wiggle of his brow.

"I...! You...! How old are you anyway!?"

"Thirty-seven."

"..."

"..."

"... Anaido, tell me the truth."

"Ahahaha! Twenty-four!" Anaido laughed, holding up four fingers, as if he thought Hijiriido didn't know what the number four was. "Seriously though, who just shows up at a guy's house without even knowing basics like his age? What if I was a serial killer who wanted to say, drill a hole in your head?"

"That's... oddly specific."

"I have specific dreams."

"..."

"..."

"What were we talking about again?"

"I don't know~."

"Uggggh...." Hijiriido groaned, flopping back against the sofa. "Great, now I'm out of the working mindset!"

"Oh yeah! That's it!" Anaido exclaimed, pointing his finger in the air. "How come you always come here? Don't you have other stuff to do?"

"What does that mean?" Hijiriido asked, looking up at the ceiling light.

"Come on, you've just started university! Shouldn't you be out in clubs at midnight, or sneaking around with guys, or... or... uh... umm... drugs?"

"Hm, never really been into that sort of stuff," Hijiriido said with a snort. Anaido tilted his head inquisitively.

"Don't you have any friends to hang out with?"

Turning her head away from him, Hijiriido looked out the window, her cheeks slightly red.

".... you."

"... ah."

"It's not like I haven't ever had friends, or done... 'stuff'..." Hijiriido elaborated, pulling her legs up to her chest and hugging them. "But, I don't know... I just... don't really talk with a lot of people my age."

"Huh." Uncrossing his legs, Anaido pressed his lips together in thought briefly, before looking back up at Hijiriido, his grin catching her attention.

"Honestly, I'm probably worse than you when it comes to people. Frankly, I'm amazed I can even string together a sentence!" He said as he slapped his head, the dark humour enough to make Hijiriido crack a smile. "I'd have a talk with our big brother Sakaido. He seems like quite the perceptive type."

"Yeah, you've got that right," Hijiriido agreed. "Also, 'big brother'?"

"What? He's the oldest! I think!" 

"Aha, well, he acts like it, definitely."

"Hmm, come to think of it, I actually don't know too much about him," Anaido mused, crossing his arms in contemplation. 

"Well duh. A detective like him probably has a bunch old enemies from past cases he's solved, he has to say safe!" Hijiriido said, already dreaming up scenes of Sakaido in a trenchcoat and a fedora fleeing Yakuza thugs through alleyways.

"A detective, hmmm..." Pursing his lips, Anaido scratched his chin as his eyes darted all over the room, soon landing on Hijiriido's still-open laptop. "Huh. I get the impression the guy's been a detective for awhile. He's bound to have solved a few cases by now."

"Mmmhmmm," Hijiriido hummed, kicking her feet again as the Sakaido in her head pulled out a gun and started shooting the mobsters.

"Well, wouldn't info about them and, by extension, _him_ , be online?" Anaido asked, gesturing with his head towards the laptop. 

"Wait, wait," Hijiriido said, her brow furrowed. "Are you saying we _stalk_ Mr. Sakaido?"

"..."

"..."

* * *

"Ooooo! I remember hearing about that case!" Anaido said, reaching over Hijiriido's shoulder and poking the screen. "The Florist... weird name for a serial killer."

"Hey! Don't tap the screen!" Hijiriido swatted his hand away, prompting a scoff from Anaido as he leant back. He had moved from the armchair to the sofa, sitting directly behind Hijiriido, his legs spread so his feet wouldn't poke her behind. Glancing out the window, Anaido realised the sky had turned a dark purple, with a few dotted stars now being visible, and was about to ask Hijiriido what time it was when she distracted him by clicking on the link.

"Okay, let's see..." Quickly scanning through the article, which detailed the arrest of the serial killer "the Florist", she let out an irritated groan. "Ugh, no mention of Sakaido."

"No, but the article was published on the 13th of September, 2019," Anaido pointed out. 

"Does that mean something?" Hijiriido asked, looking up at him hopefully.

"That particular date was a Friday the 13th. Pretty spooky, huh?"

".... I'm going on another article," Hijiriido grumbled, ignoring Anaido's chuckles as she backed out onto the home page. "Well, moving on..." Clicking onto the next page, she began scrolling down. "Any titles stand out to you?"

"Nah...." Anaido mumbled, tapping his fingers together as he began to grow bored. Stifling a yawn, he was about to suggest they call it a night, before a particular headline stood out to him.

"Ah-ha! That one!" He thrust his finger towards the screen, nearly jabbing Hijiriido in the back of the head, who darted away with a start.

"H-Hey! Watch where you're pointing!" she scolded, before looking back at the screen where Anaido was pointing. "An awards ceremony with the mayor, huh? What made you pick that one?"

"Well, counting the previous pages, it's the thirty-third link."

Confused, Hijiriido turned and looked back up at Anaido, whose grin suddenly tightened and stretched in an unnatural manner.

"What does... that have to do with anything?"

"It's my favourite number!" Anaido said, recovering quickly with a smile as he retracted his hands and hid them behind his back.

"Okay..." Setting a mental note to follow up this particular topic at some point, Hijiriido turned back to the laptop and clicked the link, taking her to an article from 2016.

"Look like... an awards ceremony," Hijiriido noted, scrolling down the article slowly. "I remember this, it was after they solved the Mincemeat Murders, the Major held this big ceremony to honour the officers who-"

"There he is!" This time, Anaido leaned over Hijiriido to point at the very bottom of the screen, specifically at the tuft of shocking pink hair. Letting out a small gasp, Hijiriido scrolled down, revealing Sakaido, along with two other men dressed in uniforms, sitting to attention on a stage watching the Major give a speech. 

"HE solved the Mincemeat Murders?! WHAT?!" Hijiriido shrieked, her hands jerking away from the keyboard like it had burnt her. Giving an impressed whistle, Anaido, still leaning over Hijriido, his chest almost resting on her head, reached over and scrolled further down.

"My, what a way to start your career... not bad... Naruhito Sakaido..." he said, tasting each syllable with relish.

"Naruhito Sakaido..." Hijriido copied, leaning forward and looking closer at another picture, this time a close-up of Narihisago and his colleagues. "He looks so young... he was probably only a few years older than me... to think he was already this accomplished."

"Guess there's hope for you after all, huh?" Anaido glanced down at Hijiriido with wry grin, who met him with a confident smile.

"Looks like there is."

"Well, now that we know our brilliant detective's full name..." Anaido said, backing out of the article. "What's say we do some more sleuthing? Oh, do you think he has an Instagram?!"

"I-I... Isn't that a bit much? I mean, aren't we getting into more... personal stuff?"

"Think about it... if it's on the internet, is it really private? As a detective-in-training, you should really get used to this sort of thing."

"..."

"..."

"Give me that mouse."

* * *

"The worst part was that he thought I was checking him out. That made things a bit awkward, but he seemed to enjoy it, the sadist!"

"I _have_ told you to stop profiling people in public you know!" Giggling, Ayako took another sip of wine, her cheeks at this point permanently dusted with a light blush. "No wonder the poor guy got the wrong idea!"

"And _I've_ told you it's a good habit for a detective to get into!" Sakaido countered, rolling his eyes as he took Ayako's empty plate from her and stacked it on top his, gently pushing away her hand when she tried to take it back. "Nuh-uh. This is _your_ night. Not gonna lift a finger."

Snorting, Ayako took another sip. "I mean, I'll be doing a lot of work soon, so I might as well get used to it now."

Dumping the dishes and cutlery in the sink, Sakaido ran the tap for a moment before turning it off and walking back over to the dining table. "If I had it my way, you wouldn't work a day in your life."

"You know after tonight I'm going to have to work twice as hard, right?"

Smiling, Sakaido raised his glass. "All the more reason to kick your feet up now."

"Ha! Fair enough!" Clinking their glasses together, the two downed the last few dregs of wine, Sakaido blinking hard as his thoughts grew fuzzier.

"Ahaha! You know, you don't have to drink if you don't want to!" Ayako said, laughing at his expression. "Remember at our university graduation?"

"H-Hey! That was a one-time thing!" Sakaido protested, the mere mention of that horrifying night conjuring sick memories of break-dancing and waking up in a toilet. "You might not have noticed, but I've grown quite a bit since then!"

"Of course, of course, dear..." With a nostalgic grin, Ayako slid down into her seat with a sigh. "We really have grown fast. Never thought I'd be in this position in just a few years. I'd have guessed at least a decade!"

Sakaido reached across the table, grabbing her hand and caressing her knuckles with his thumb. "If anyone deserves a promotion, it's you. I know that better than anyone."

"Ehehe, thanks..." Ayako said, holding onto his hand in response, before sitting up slightly straighter. "What about you though? How's work been going for you the last week?" she asked, her smile thinning slightly when Sakaido's hand predictably tensed up.

"What does... aha, what brought this on?"

"Naru." 

_Oh god._

For a moment, Sakaido attempted to look away at something else, but the gravity of Ayako's "Disappointed-Mother-Look" forced his gaze back towards her. "Aw come on, Ayako. You know I... ugh, you know."

"Naru, you know I don't like it when you don't talk to me." Placing her other hand on top of his, she softened her expression slightly. Sakaido could only hold out against it for so long before his walls came crashing down.

"I... I, ugh... sorry," he apologised.

"It's alright. Go on."

"Well, I... I think I might... I'm starting to consider the idea of... quitting..."

Confused, Ayako suddenly sat up straighter, her surprise evident. "Really? But you love being a detective! It's all you've wanted to do!"

"I know! I love being a detective. It's probably the only thing I'd be able to do. I'm not suited for office work. But..." No longer able to look at her in the eyes, Sakaido refocused his gaze on Ayako's hands. "But I... feel so... trapped... constrained. I feel like I have to fight just to do my damn job."

"Is it your boss again? Uradio?"

"Uraido," Sakaido said, his brow uncharacteristically twisted. "That bastard is the whole reason I even wanted to be a detective. He was my hero. But I guess heroes only exist in fiction. I should have known better. He could never live up to the books I read."

"Oh Naru..." Pulling her chair around the table next to him, Ayako pulled her boyfriend closer, resting her head on his shoulder and hugging him tightly. "You know I'm here to support you. You take your time and do what you think is right. I know you'll do that. You always have. And I'll support you every step."

Despite himself, Sakaido couldn't stop himself from smiling as he leant into her embrace. "You're too good to me, AyaKA?!" he shouted, jumping slightly as his trouser pocket vibrated, in turn startling Ayako.

"Wh-What happened?"

".... ahhh, don't worry. It's just my phone," Sakaido said, an annoyed grimace on his face as his phone vibrated again. He shuffled away from Ayako to reach into his pocket, only for his phone to buzz again. "What the hell?" Pulling his phone out, he turned it on quickly, expecting an urgent call from work, only for his face to fall when he realised that he had thre-four notifications from Instagram, all from the same person: _Det. Hijiriido_.

"Why am I not surprised?" Raising his eyes, Sakaido watched notification after notification come in as Hijiriido presumably went about liking his entire backlog of pictures, most of them consisting of photos with Ayako and close-ups of exotic drinks.

"Oooo, who's 'Hijiriido'? A work friend?" Ayako asked, leaning on Sakaido's shoulder as the notifications continued, the man himself shaking his head in weary amusement.

"Well, I guess she might as well be..."

* * *

"Anaido, stop! This is on my account!"

"We've already started! You can't just _stop_ halfway through!"

"Uuuuggghhhh, now Mr. Sakaido's gonna think I'm some kind of stalker!"

"Wait, you aren't?"

"Anaido!"


	8. Momentary Bliss; or, Let Me Out III

"Goodbyeeee..." Wagging his fingers at the departing customer, Anaido sighed, rolling up the sleeves of his shirt as he leant back in his chair. "Phew, maybe I should start wearing a tee," he wondered aloud, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. Gazing curiously at the droplets for but a moment, he hurriedly flicked them away before he could begin counting them, and groaned. "I need to put a fan on the shopping liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiist......"

"I have a spare at home, if you need it."

"GAHFUCKJEEEE!!" Windmilling his arms wildly, Anaido managed to right himself just in time to save both him and the chair from any serious head trauma. Taking a deep breath, Anaido reached under the table to grab a box of tissues, forcing a smile as Sakaido, in an unusual reversal of roles, couldn't stop laughing. "You really need to announce yourself, brother."

"Ahaha! I-I'm sorry! It's just that... what was that reaction?!" Managing to calm himself down, Sakaido shook his head in amusement, pointing at the box of tissues Anaido was pulling from. "Mind if I use one?"

"Knock yourself out."

"Thanks." Exhaling noisily, Sakaido wiped his face down. It was only than Anaido noticed that this was the first time he'd seen the detective without his jacket and scarf, instead opting for a simple black vest and jogging bottoms.

"You out jogging or something?"

"No, though I probably should," Sakaido admitted. "This heatwave is just too much for me. Came out of nowhere too."

"Well, how can I help you this smouldering afternoon?" Anaido stood up, already making his way over to the bookshelves. "Don't tell me you've already finished _Gunslinger_?"

"Well, I'm a few chapters away from the end, but I thought I may as well get something else before then."

"Ahaha! Great news!" Turning away, Anaido began pulling random books off the shelves, then putting them back as he usually did, Sakaido moving to stand next to him as he watched his hands move gracefully. "So, you want the next book in the series? Or something fresh?" Anaido asked, flicking through a thick tome.

"Well, I'm enjoying it so far, but I'll take anything fantasy really," Sakaido said, moving back slightly in surprise when Anaido suddenly shut the book he was thumbing through and looked over at him, an odd smile on his face.

"At the risk of prying too much... why aren't you more interested in detective fiction, Sakaido?" Groaning, Sakaido just about stopped himself from rolling his eyes as he tried to give Anaido a friendly face.

"I've already told you, I have a stressful job, I don't like to be reminded of it."

"So you hate being a detective."

"I... ugh, no, I don't."

"That's what I thought," Anaido said, placing the book back in its place without even looking. "You act far too analytical in your everyday life for someone who would consider being a detective just a job, or even hated it, and you don't seem to have become that way because your job demanded it. I think you became a detective BECAUSE of your nature..."

"Uh, ah huh..." Furrowing his brow, Sakaido couldn't help but look Anaido up and down slightly.

_What the hell? I knew this guy could be perceptive, but this is... REALLY perceptive. Is the airheaded goofball an act or... no..._

"Ahaha! Nice of you to prove me right!"

"Ah, sorry!" Mildly annoyed with himself, Sakaido stepped back a little bit. 

"Anyway... if you're basically a natural-born detective, how come you don't like your job? I'd kill to be a detective."

Sakaido opened his mouth to say something, only for it to immediately shut. With a hard sigh, he leant against the sturdy bookshelves, covering one side of his face with his hand. Curious, Anaido imitated his pose as he waited for Sakaido to speak. Finally, he let his hand fall back to his side, and he looked back at Anaido with a tired, forced smile.

"I'd say it's less about being a detective that I hate... and more about being a police officer."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I've wanted to be a detective from the moment I could read. All I read growing up were detective novels. I watched crime thrillers, psychological dramas, read graphic novels about detectives. I'm still actually a bit of a Batman fan, you know!"

"Whoa really!? I should get a comics section!!"

"Ahaha! Maybe." His gaze becoming more wistful, Sakaido's smile loosened and became more natural as he continued. "But all of that was nothing compared to Hirohito Uraido. The real-life brilliant detective. To me, he was better than any book, movie or game. Because he was real. He made me realise that detectives weren't just fiction. That there were other people out there like me, who enjoyed nothing more than steamrolling through difficult puzzles and picking apart mysteries. Did you know in 1997 he solved _three_ different murder cases, each within a _month_ of the last?"

"..."

"Anaido?"

"..." 

"Anaido!" Sakaido snapped his fingers in front of Anaido's face, who had suddenly spaced out sometime in the last few seconds. "You alright man?"

"Oh yeah, fine!" Anaido recovered professionally. "I just realised I remembered the guy. Didn't he also solve the Millennial Manslaughters in... uh, 2000?"

"Yeah, he did," Sakaido said, quickly getting caught up in what he was saying again and missing Anaido's quiet sigh of relief. "He was what inspired to become a detective. It's what I worked towards for years and years. Eventually, I finally managed to achieve my dream. I could solve mysteries, catch criminals. I could save people. And on top of all that, I find out that I'm working directly under my childhood hero."

"You worked under the man himself? Go Sakaido!" Anaido cheered, blasting him with several finger bangs. "Go on! What's it like to work under the big man, huh?"

"Awful."

"I-uh, what?" Anaido asked, his smile faltering. Sakaido's previously affable expression had fallen away, replaced with a look of restrained resentment, his lips pulled tight. 

"I haven't solved a case in years. Whenever I get assigned to one, progress always stalls soon after. Then, the case gets locked away forever, and I get forced onto a new one. The cycle repeats over and over. The worst part of all is that months later, some random, miraculous piece of evidence will come up, but it's always kept hidden from me until after it's already been announced.

Blinking slowly, Anaido furrowed his brow in an oddly thoughtful expression, snapping his fingers when something suddenly came to mind. "Four days ago, at half-past four. They announced that they had caught the guy who killed the Hayaserua family a few years back. Were you...?"

"Yeah. I was working on it, until the chief told me to stop. Said that there was no sense to keep working on such a stubborn case. That I needed to focus on other projects. But then he goes around behind my back and...!"

"You think he's blacklisting you from cases?"

Narrowing his eyes slightly, Sakaido looked over at Anaido, who raised his eyebrow in a sly manner.

"... it's not something that I really want to say aloud."

"But why would he have anything against you? You solved the Mincemeat Murders, surely that's enough of a vote of confidence," Anaido said, the comment enough to briefly take Sakaido away from the present topic.

"How do you know that? Did you always know?"

"No. Hijiriido told me. Apparently she was stalking you online and came up with a bunch of stuff. Even found her Instagram," Anaido explained, capping his sentence off with a mildly mischievous grin that made one doubt his intentions.

"Hmph, sounds like her," Sakaido said, his lips just about twitching into a smile before Hijiriido's image in his head was replaced with Uraido. "Regardless of what it is I've done, the guy clearly has it out for me."

"Maybe he's just a boomer afraid that the younger, sexier detective will steal the spotlight from him~?" 

"Ugh, never say the word 'boomer' again, it sounds weird coming from you," Sakaido cringed, shaking his head at Anaido's dry cackles. "And I hope it's not as petty as that."

"Well, in any case, sounds like Mr. Childhood Hero doesn't appreciate you," Anaido said, probably meaning it in a genuine way but the nature of his voice forcing it to come across as snarky. "What are you gonna do next, Sakaido?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I have thought of quitting recently, but being a detective in my blood. I can't just... leave!" Sakaido bemoaned, throwing his hand up. "It's not like I could just go freelance or anything, the police-"

"Why not?"

"... excuse me?"

_"Why not?"_

Sakaido stared, somewhat confusedly at Anaido, who leaned closer to him, his smile taking on a slightly more manic tone than was normal., even for him

"Why not go freelance, my dear Sakaido~?"

"What... are you saying?"

"Come on! How many times am I gonna say it?! You're a big enough boy, why not go solo?"

I-I just-You... uh." Caught off guard, words aimlessly spilt out of Sakaido's mouth, Anaido watching on, more than pleased with himself as the man attempted to form coherent sentences. "I... can't just go freelance!"

"Why not?"

"W-Well, for starters I have no idea how to start a business!" Without breaking eye contact, Anaido leaned back, grabbed a book of one of the top shelves and held it in front of Sakaido.

_How To Start A Business_

"P-People aren't just gonna flock to pay some random private eye when they have the police for free, that's not-don't even think about it!" Sakaido warned when Anaido reached up to grab another book.

"Come on! You solved the Mincemeat Murders! Use that as part of your brand image!" Anaido said, throwing an arm around Sakaido and yanking him closer, to the other man's slight chagrin. 

"You act like I'm some kind of celebrity."

"No, but the murders are!"

"Are you telling me to use people's deaths as a marketing tool?"

"Ehhhmmmrrrrmmmm...."

"Forget it!" Sakaido said. "I'll admit, it might be nice, but it'll be far too hard. I'm not gonna be a freelance detective."

"Oh my gosh! Mr. Sakaido, you're gonna be a freelance detective!?"

_Oh for fuck's sake._

"Yeeep!" Anaido chirped as Hijiriido rushed over to the two of them. Like Sakaido, she was wearing her usual style but without the extra layers, with the exception of the hat, which was still perched on her head.

"Nope!" Sakaido clarified, still pressed up against Anaido's side. "I was just telling Anaido here that-!

"That he's quitting his job to become a private eye!" Anaido interrupted.

"What, no I-!"

"Going the classic way, Mr. Sakaido? That's so cool!" Hijiriido fawned, looking as if she'd been plucked straight from the crowd of a boy-band concert.

"I know!" Anaido agreed, raising his arm to wrap around Hijiriido much like he'd done with Sakaido. However, upon realising the immense height difference, he couched down to her height, nearly choking Sakaido as he dragged him down, before draping his arm around her, his fingertips almost reaching her waist. "Three cheers for our brilliant detective!"

"Uhhh..."

All three turned and looked at the door to see a woman standing in the open door frame, apparently unable to process the collage of Hijiriido with a bright pink face and clasped hands, Anaido with his legs spread and half bent, and Sakaido almost falling over with one leg sticking out to try and keep his balance. After a few moments, she slowly turned and walked out of the shop, letting the door swing shut behind her.

"AhahahahahaHAHAHAHA!!" Finally snapping, Anaido let the other two go as he fell backwards and hit the floor, laughing to the point of tears. The ridiculous sight was quick to set Hijiriido off, who followed suit by collapsing into a pile of badly-hidden giggles. Watching the two, it was only a matter of time before Sakaido, who attempted to maintain an exasperated, annoyed look, eventually couldn't take it, joining the two in a chorus of laughter.

* * *

"Ahh, now I get it! I'm sorry for the fuss, Mr. Sakaido," Hijriido said, giving Sakaido an apologetic look before putting her hands on her hips and fixing Anaido with a stern glare, who sat in his desk with his feet kicked up. "Anaido! Why didn't you tell me what was going on?"

"Because... it was funny," he said with a sickeningly sweet grin that only grew wider when Hijiriido slammed her hands on the desk in an apparent show of force. Leaning against the wall next to them, Sakaido watched them with tired yet entertained expression.

"Come on now, you know what he's like." Looking back at Sakaido, Hijriido rolled her eyes, matching his smile with one of her one.

"Finally, someone gets me!"

"Hey, I'm right here!" Anaido protested, making a face as the other two laughed.

"Come to think of it though," Hijiriido began. "This is the first time all three of us have been together, huh?"

"Oh? What do you mean by that?" Sakaido asked.

"Well, since it seems like we're always seeing each other and talking about each other, I just thought it was strange that we haven't all actually been in the same room."

"It is something that crossed my mind," Anaido admitted. "Well, unless you count the time Hijiriido nearly sent Sakaido to the hospital."

"Hey!"

"Personally I find the fact that three such radically different people could be such fast friends," Sakaido mused lightly, finching when Hijiriido let out a high-pitched squick.

"You... think of me as your friend, Mr. Sakaido?!"

"I-I, uh, I guess so. Or at least a decent acquaintance!" he hurriedly said, holding up his hands as Anaido chuckled.

"Ahaha! No wonder you called her a fangirl! Can't blame her though, I'm quite fond of our brilliant detective here~."

"Do you _have_ to call me that...?"

"Oh, right, we were talking about you, Mr. Sakaido!" Hijiriido remembered, managing to hold back the urge to get Sakaido to sign something. "So, you're definitely not going to go freelance?"

"Of course I can't," Sakaido sighed, crossing his arms again. "It's hard enough to get any business off the ground, as Anaido can probably attest-" The man in question grunted humorously. "-let alone something niche like a private eye."

"So... you're going to quit being a detective?" Sakaido opened his mouth to respond, only for his stomach to drop when he looked at Hijiriido's face. Her eyes seemed to have doubled in size, and were coated in a shiny sheen. She vaguely reminded him of a small animal of sorts.

"Ummm... maybe?"

"But you can't!" Hijriido protested, taking several steps forward and unintentionally pinning Sakaido to the wall. "You're an awesome detective! If you stop then-!"

"C-Calm down, Hijiriido!" Grabbing her by the shoulders, Sakaido pushed her back carefully and stepped away from the wall. "I don't know what I'm going to do alright. I wanna be a detective, and I get you do too, but being a police officer isn't all it's cracked up to be. It's not what I expected at all." Her expression downcast, Hijiriido looked away in an unusually melancholic manner.

"A detective doesn't have to be a police officer..." she said, prompting another sigh from Sakaido.

"Suppose I do try out this whole private eye thing. How am I supposed to support myself and my girlfriend in the meantime? She doesn't exactly make a-" Sakaido all of a sudden stopped, his eyes widening.

_Her promotion. Ayako got promoted to a... a... what's it called? Manager? Or was it an Assistant Director? Regardless, she's gotten a big boost to her pay. Assuming we don't move to a more expensive apartment and our rent stays the same..._

"Mr. Sakaido?"

"Oh, what do we have here...?" Anaido said, having spoken for the first time in a little while now and drawing attention back to him. Taking his feet off the desk, he rose from his seat and walked around to the other two, hands in his pockets. "What have you figured out, Sakaido?" His face twisted in deep thought, Sakaido let go of Hijiriido, who looked back up at him with a hopeful expression.

"I... I need to go. I'll buy a book next time, Anaido," he said, relaxing his face somewhat and going over to the door somewhat briskly.

"Wait, Mr. Sakaido!" Hijiriido made to run over and grab him, only for Sakaido to turn back, a reassuring smile on his face, though whether or not it was genuine she didn't know.

"I'll see you guys later. It was nice to have us all together finally. Maybe we do something." With that, he opened the door and walked out, his brow furrowing the second his face was no longer visible. Lowering her outstretched arm, Hijiriido watched him cross the road through the window with a thoughtful expression as Anaido stepped forward to join her.

"His face just then... what do you think he figured-ugk!" she said, as Anadio suddenly slapped his hand on her hat and rubbed it, messing up her hair underneath in the process. 

"Chill, sister..." he said, watching as he lost sight of Sakaido, a wry grin on his face. "Have faith in our brilliant detective."

"Why _do_ you keep calling him that?"

"It came to me in a dream!"

"Aha, not surprised."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title comes from the song Momentary Bliss by Gorillaz ft. slowthai and Slaves


	9. Release; or, Let Me Out IV

_Going freelance... My own detective agency... Fuck you, Anaido. You too, Hijiriido. You guys just had to put that idea in my head._

Sakaido lay silent in his bed, still in his dress shirt and trousers, his eyes shut, oblivious to the world around him as he surrendered himself his thoughts, the only sounds in the dark room being his rhythmic breathing.

_Given Ayako's pay rise... if we're smart, we could definitely live on that alone. We'll have to hold off on the family idea for awhile, but she could definitely support the both of us, at least until the business picks up..._

Sakaido's brow furrowed sharply, his lips pulling back in a grimace.

_What am I thinking?! I can't just let her slave away for hours without helping out! She's gonna need support! Though, if I'm not an officer anymore, then I'd probably have more time to spend at home. Wouldn't that be a better kind of support?_

_I'm being too presumptuous! This idea... whose to say it'll even work out to begin with... but... the alternative is..._

"You're thinking too much again, aren't you, Naru?"

Opening his eyes with a start, Sakaido looked over to the other side of the bed. The lights were still off, but he could make out Ayako's shape as she walked over. The mattress shifted slightly as she got on, and a few moments later, Sakaido could feel her pressed against his side. Removing one hand from underneath his head, he slid it under her and pulled her closer, the clinical smell of disinfectant washing over him. Feeling the texture of her clothes, he could tell that she was probably still in her uniform.

"How was work?"

"Tiring!" Ayako said, humour in her tone despite how obviously exhausted she was. "You never to appreciate how much goes into running a place like a hospital until you're the one actually running it." Sakaido let out a small chuckle, the image of her with bed hair and a stack of coffee cups behind a desk mildly amusing. "But come on, we both know it wasn't _my_ job you were thinking about." Sakaido's smile instantly vanished.

"What do you mean?"

"Naru, you're going to quit, aren't you?" Sakaido didn't respond verbally, but the tightening of his grip around her body was enough of an answer. "I'm glad you've made up your mind, and frankly you couldn't have picked a better time!" Swallowing loudly, Sakaido looked down. His eyes now adjusted to the dark, he looked down, finding Ayako's eyes.

"I just... this is... a big thing, Ayako. I don't want to leave you out to dry supporting us by yourself while I fool around without a clue and end up crawling back to Uraido."

"Silly, you won't be leaving me out to dry! It's hard, I can't deny that, but you just doing this is giving me more support than your money ever could. Besides, you already know what you're going to do, right?"

Feeling slightly breathless, Sakaido lent his head back and closed his eyes again. "Yeah, I've spoken with some people, and... I'm tossing around the idea of being a... you know, umm..."

"A private eye?"

"If that's what you wanna call it..."

Ayako giggled, entwining her leg with Sakaido's. "Of course. You could never stop being a detective."

"But what if it doesn't work out? Starting up my own business, especially something like a detective agency, it's-"

"Then we'll deal with it when it gets to that," Ayako interrupted, splaying her fingers across his chest. "But until we get there, I'll be here to support you all the way, Naruhito. Go on and live your dream. I could never stop you from doing that, even if I wanted to."

"God..." Sighing, Sakaido opened his eyes, looking back down at Ayako with a soft, almost reverent gaze. "You're not a real person. I refuse to believe it," he said, prompting a laugh from Ayako.

"That's right! I'm absolutely unreal!"

"Okay, Little Miss Ego," Sakaido said, shaking his head, unable to stop a grin from forming. "Seriously though, you're too good to me. I need to pay you back for all this somehow." For a moment, the two laid there in silence, the only sounds being their breathing, which had long since synced up. That was until Sakaido felt Ayako's hand unsubtly slid down his chest and over his abdomen. 

"Aren't you predictable?" Sakaido smirked as he turned on his side, his hand travelling from her waist to her chest as she reached the end of his stomach, her fingers sliding underneath his waistband.

"Guilty as charged, detective..."

* * *

Shutting down his laptop, Uraido lent back in his chair with a great groan, rotating his wrist as he decompressed from the day of work. _Hmph, I wonder if I should start thinking about glasses,_ he thought, rolling his eyes underneath their lids as the ache gradually lessened. Shrugging, he rose to his feet and stretched, already looking a decade younger as he shook the weariness from his bones. Turning around, he grabbed his coat from the back of his chair and slipped it on, checking his wristwatch as he did so. 

**_23:51_ **

_Another hard day's work. Perhaps I should take the weekend off. I haven't for a long time. I could use the opportunity to finally pick up a new book. If I'm not mistaken, Book³ recently reopened. Maybe I'll pay it a visit._

Slipping his laptop into his shoulder bag, Uraido turned the lights off and left his office, walking down the hallway as he looked up _Book³_ on his phone.

_Closed. Ha, well I can't say I'm exactly surprised. I'll have to pop in on the weekend. Or perhaps on the way to work tomorrow._

Noticing the four-and-a-half star rating, Uraido raised his eyebrows, and began scrolling through the reviews, ignoring the security guard, who wished him goodnight as he passed through the foyer and onto the street.

> **_Brilliant Detective Miyo_ **
> 
> _7 reviews_
> 
> _BEST BOOKSHOP EVER!!! (≧_ ∇≦)/ I'm always going to this place and I love it! There are so many books! (＠_＠;)The owner is also really nice and fun to talk to! Go go go go! ＼(◎o◎)／！

"... it's silly to rely on other's opinions anyway," Uradio dismissed, shutting off the screen and shoving the phone into his jacket pocket, only to have to pull it out again when _Jupiter, Bringer of Jollity_ began playing. Looking at the screen, he was mildly surprised to see Sakaido was calling him. A practice he carried over from his days as a simple detective, Uraido liked to have all his coworker's numbers for ease of communication, especially when he was up late at night, having just made a breakthrough with a case. Even so, he wouldn't have expected Sakaido of all people to be the one to initiate a conversation between the two. Accepting the call, Uraido held his phone up to his ear.

"This is unlike you, Saka-"

_"Ahh... Naru.. fu...!"_

Uraido stopped walking, caught off guard by the unexpectedly feminine moans.

_"Ahh... ahaha... Uraido, you there?"_

"Wh-"

_"Fuck you! I quit! Ahhh, shit... go ahead and try to solve those cases on your own! My last pay better come with an... ahh...!"_

The line soon after went dead as Uraido stood underneath the street light, staring at his phone like it was a strange oddity that he'd just picked up off the ground, his jaw tensing as he struggled to suppress his growing outburst. However, after a few moments of attempted restraint, Uradio gave up, and let loose what he'd been trying to hold back.

"Ahahahaha! AHAHAHAHA!" Doubling over, Uraido nearly dropped his phone as he fell to his knees, laughing madly to the point where he could feel tears pooling in the corner of his eyes. Quickly regaining control of himself, Uraido stumbled to his feet, quickly darting his gaze around to make sure nobody had seen him, all the while giggling like a child.

He was safe.

Taking several deep breaths, Uraido finally tucked his phone away and resumed his walk home, his smile nearly breaking his face as it stretched to inhumane lengths.

_Well, it took him far longer than I thought, and I certainly wasn't expecting it done in such a crude manner, but he's finally cracked. Just as I expected. Sakaido will probably try to continue following the path of a detective. Just like I did all those years ago. I can't wait to unleash this brilliant detective upon the system._

With a skip in his step, Uraido slipped into the shadows, his ominous chuckle never once subsiding.

* * *

"Holy shit. I can't believe I did that..." Sakaido said, his hand resting over his eyes, slightly dazed. "It seemed like such a good idea in the moment, too. Why the hell did I do that?"

"Ahaha! I thought it was very funny actually. Just imagine his face!." Rolling off Sakaido's chest, Ayako sat up, sighing with relief as the fan passed over her. "It reminds me of that time when we accidentally ended up in someone else's dorm, and when they showed up you said-"

"Ugh, don't ever remind me of that night! I was such an asshole..." Lifting his hand up, Sakaido stared up at the ceiling, paying no mind to Ayako as she laughed and got out of bed.

_I did it. I'm free. I can do whatever I want. This is so reckless. It's stupid. But... dammit I'm so excited! I haven't felt this way in years! First thing tomorrow, I'm doing nothing but research, research and research! Maybe I should get that book Anaido tried selling me._

_Anaido. Hijiriido. You crazy kids. Thank you._

"Naru~."

Snapping back to reality, Sakaido looked over at the door to see Ayako peering around the frame, her bare hips tantalisingly peeking into view. 

"I'm going to have a shower before bed. Mind giving me a hand?" With that, she turned and disappeared down the hall, Sakaido barely wasting a moment before pulling back the covers and hopping off the bed, sauntering after her with a somewhat mischievous grin.

_Thank you indeed._


	10. Momentary Bliss II; or, From The Other Side

Yawning loudly, Anaido meandered down the stairs, opening the door to his shop and stumbling in, his movement akin to that of a puppet tied too loose to its strings. Rounding the desk, he walked through, absentmindedly running his fingers over the spines as he approached the window. Peering up, he watched as the sun's rays just started to peer over the buildings opposite. 

"Mmmmm... probably close enough," he grumbled, sliding over to the door and flipping the open sign around.

_Gonna be a shorter day today. Hope I remember to shut the shop earlier. I don't wanna end up late. I'll have to ask Hijiriido to keep time for me._

Letting out another yawn, he turned around and began walking back to his desk, only to be stopped by the sound of the door opening behind him. 

"Ten minutes early, I see. A very good work ethic there."

"Ahaha, I do my best," Anaido said, turning around and concealing his weariness behind a mask of smiles as he faced his first customer of the day, and in that moment, Anaido had never been more thankful towards his skill at playing dumb as Hirohito Uradio stepped into his shop. The man looked like he'd stepped out from the pages of a novel, wearing an eye-catching (for better or for worse) red long coat over a full suit in spite of the current heat. Looking up at his face, Anaido took a moment to internally laugh at his absurdly large moustache before focusing on his eyes. It was hard to tell, as the sun's light was still fairly dim, but Anaido could have sworn they were almost red.

"Oh, do you know me? Or have we met before, and I simply don't remember?" Uraido asked, raising an eyebrow.

_Shit, he noticed._

"Of course I know you! I'd be ashamed if I didn't recognise the brilliant detective Uraido! I've read _all_ about your exploits." His arms open, Anaido gave his best "starstruck" expression, hoping it wasn't too over-the-top for him to buy. Thankfully, it seemed that even if Uraido did catch on to his artificiality, he led it slid in favour of giving his ego a nice stroke.

"My, how flattering of you. There's no need for such praise though," Uraido said, his expression suggesting he _very_ much enjoyed said praise. "I'm only here to find myself a good book to read. I would appreciate your swift assistance," he continued as he walked past Anaido and looked around the shop. His face out of view, Anaido let his facade drop slightly, his smile narrowing in a serpentine way as he watched Uraido's back.

_What a start to the day. No wonder this guy gets on Sakaido's ass when he's so far up his own. What do I do? He's a customer, so I should probably just help him like anyone else. But... he's also the guy picking on my brother. Should I tell him to get lost on principle?_

"I must say, you have yourself a fine establishment, here, Mr...?"

"Anaido."

"Anaido!" Picking out a book seemingly at random ( _The Haunting of Hill House_ , Anaido assumed by its placement on the shelf), Uraido flicked through it, skimming through at such a pace that he couldn't be actually reading it. "A very antiquated style, but brimming with charm."

"Ha, I could say the same thing about you, Mr. Uraido," Anaido bantered, trying to keep up the casual, affable act that always seemed so natural to him to slip into. Uraido gave him a look that seemed humoured, but also gave an odd air of contempt. Feeling slightly confused, Anaido's smile dimmed a bit, though it still remained.

"So, Anaido." Uraido snapped the book shut and, after moving some books along, put it back on the self, a few spaces ahead of where it was. Anaido involuntarily clenched his teeth and swallowed quietly, his eyes darting to the book once before refocusing on Uraido, who gave him a sickly sweet smile. "Tell me, do you have any recommendations?" 

"Of course! If you'd just join me on the other side." Countering with a forced smile of his own, Anadio ducked behind the shelf into the next row. Bemused, Uraido walked around his end, and the two met in the middle. Running his eyes along the rows, Anaido eventually found what he was looking for. "Aha. There you are." Pulling out a thick, leather book, Anaido showed it off to Uraido, who frowned upon reading the title.

_Divine Comedy_

"Interesting. Why this selection of all things?" Uraido asked, taking the book and running his hands over the cover, Anaido noticing for the first time that he was wearing brown gloves.

"You just seem like the type of person who'd appreciate more 'classical' works. Nothing more to it. If you want, you can pick something else." Uraido looked between him and the book a few times, as if he were trying to figure out if there was some kind of ulterior meaning or motive behind the choice, but ultimately saw nothing worth making a fuss over.

"No, it's fine. I haven't read _Purgatorio_ or _Paradiso_ , so it should make for an interesting read." Uraido turned and walked out towards the counter, his ponytail swishing between his shoulder blades. Almost against his will, Anaido reached out to yank on it, but pulled back at the last second and followed, smirking to himself.

"I did some research into your shop, by the way," Uraido said, placing the book on the counter as Anaido moved into place behind it.

"Oh? And what's that supposed to mean, Sir?"

"It is my understanding that the shop was closed for over a year and only reopened a few weeks ago. From what I've heard, you were in the hospital."

"Aha, yeah. A bookshelf fell on me. Silly, huh?" Laughing at himself, Anaido dropped the book and a plastic bag before handing it over to Uraido, who almost snatched it away.

"Indeed. I imagine that the recovery process would have been arduous, especially with your arithmomania."

Anaido's brain crashed.

"My... what?"

Uraido sneered. "Well, when I placed the book in its wrong place, you seemed very agitated by it, and immediately afterwards you found Dante's _Divine Comedy_ by counting. It's possible you might simply have OCD, but I also noticed you looking at the sun earlier, and, judging by the movements of your lips, you said it was 'close enough'. Were you perhaps using the position of the sun to avoid looking at a clock?"

"Aha, you... I think that... no, I don't... Ahaha! You're... you know that you're stretching quite a bit there, buddy." Looking back at the incident later, Anaido would be astonished that he didn't completely unravel. He came close though; grinding his teeth, he grabbed his forearms tightly, his hands quickly turning pale as the blood flow slowed. Still, he kept them there, trembling as he started to feel the pressure, afraid of what he might do if he let go. He shut his eyes tightly. If he couldn't see anything, then he couldn't count anything, right? He kept his eyes shut for one second. Two seconds. Three seconds. Four seconds. Five seconds. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven.

" _ **FUCK!!**_ " His voice breaking, Anaido practically collapsed onto the counter, grinding his forehead into the wood in an attempt to stop the numbers in his head from rising any further.

"Ahahaha!"

The sudden, mocking laugh broke through Anaido's psychosis. Looking up, he saw Uraido bent over slightly, laughing like he'd just heard a hilarious joke. 

"Ahahaha! My my, it seems it was even worse than I thought! Still, it's good to know my deductions were correct, even if I was guessing a bit." Uraido stared down at the other man, his face marred by a condescending smile. Ironically, it was this that was able to bring Anaido back down to reality, forcing him to focus on something other than numbers. His heart rate rapidly decreasing, he moved back and sat in his chair, taking a deep breath before glaring up at Uraido, forcing a strained smile.

"Sakaido was right: you are a dick." To Anaido's pleasure, the comment seemed to get under Uraido's skin, his eyebrows shooting up and his smile dropping entirely.

"Sakaido?" 

"Mmmhmmm. Oh, and speak of the devil."

"What's that supposed to-?"

"Hey, Anaido! You there?"

"Ahh, I see how it is." Turning around, Uraido watched as Sakaido entered the shop, the massive grin on his face giving way to an expression of utter shock as he realised who was standing in front of him. "Well, Anaido, I thank you very much for the book. I wish you the best of luck." Anaido smiled sweetly and gave him the finger, prompting an amused snort from Uraido, who turned and walked over to Sakaido, who was still paralysed in horror.

"I wish the same to you, brilliant detective Sakaido. I hope your future endeavours pan out," he said, his tone oddly sincere as he clapped Sakaido on the shoulder as he walked past. He opened the door and took a single step out, before suddenly turning back. "Ah yes. Send my regards to your partner. I hope she was still able to walk to work." With a final wink, Uraido slid outside, closing the door behind him as he melded into the morning crowds.

The shop was quiet for a few moments before Anaido broke the silence with: "Well. He was a dick." Letting out a breathless sigh, Sakaido looked over at Anaido, his mood already improving.

"Trust me. I know. It's why I quit."

"Wait, does that mean...?"

"Yep. You're looking at a freelance detective."

"Wooo!" Rising to his feet, Anaido quickly rounded the desk and bounded over to Sakaido, shaking his hand enthusiastically. "Welcome to freedom, brother! Here for that book I assume?"

"Aha, that and several more," Sakaido said with a good nature as his arm was almost pulled out of its socket. "I'm taking a massive gamble with this. But even if it does fail, it would be better than working under that asshole a second time."

"Trust me. I know."

"What was he even doing here?" Anaido's gaze hardened, though he kept up the laid-back act.

"Being a dick. I have to say though, he's painfully observant. I can see how he was such a brilliant detective back in the day."

"Yeah. You alright by the way? You're looking a little... dishevelled."

"Give me a break. I didn't sleep until like, one!"

"Huh. I'd tell you off for that, but honestly, I wasn't much better..."

"Enough about sleep! We gotta get you prepped for business!" Grabbing a collection of five books off the shelves, Anaido shoved them all into Sakaido' hands. "This is the dumb business book from last time, this is a bunch of tips for self-employed, uhhh... ooo! This one has some advice for saving money!"

"Did you go out of your way to stock every single possible book ever?"

"That doesn't sound like buying!" Anaido said, already headed to the counter.

"Can I just point out the irony of buying a book about saving money?" Nonetheless, Sakaido followed him, dumping the books on the counter for Anaido to scan. "Thankfully, my last paycheck comes in a few days."

"If you need any advice, just message me, brother. I've lasted this long, I'm bound to have picked up a few pointers!" Anaido offered, swiftly scanning everything and sliding it all into a bag. 

"Ah, that reminds me! Here's my number!" Sakaido said. "You've probably earned it at this point. 09-"

"Nah, it's cool! I made an Instagram, I'll just hit you up there!" Anaido interrupted, waving his hand dismissively.

"Uh, okay? But you can't call me on Inst-"

"It's fine, brother! Trust me! Don't need it!" 

"O... kay... then..." Suspicious, Sakaido took the bag. "Well, I'll make sure to tell Hijiriido about it soon!"

"Define 'soon'."

"Uh, I don't know. Later?" Sakaido shrugged. "Probably not today though. I'm gonna spend most of the day figuring things out and reading up on what to do, and then my girlfriend's taking me out to celebrate. Her treat apparently."

"Nice. Enjoy your date, buddy," Anaido said with a blatantly mischievous grin. Sakaido frowned.

"You're up to something, aren't you?"

Anaido's grin grew wider.

"Hmm. Alright then. I'll see you later, Anaido." Shaking his head, Sakaido turned and walked away.

"Definitely! Thanks for lifting my mood! I mean it!" 

"Yeah, you too!" Giving a little wave, Sakaido stepped out the door.

_That asshole's definitely got something planned. Ah well. Knowing him, it can't be that bad. Whatever. I'll chase it up with him to-_

* * *

_-night_...

"Oh my god. What are you two doing here?"

"Mr. Sakaido! Congrats on quitting!" Hijiriido greeted, raising her shot glass of orange juice in celebration. His face deadpan, Sakaido looked over at Anaido, who blew him a kiss from across the table, then over at Ayako, whose flushed face suggested she was on the verge of uncontrollable laughter. In an almost robotic series of motions, Sakaido pulled out his chair and sat down next to Ayako, opposite the two surprise guests. Anaido was wearing more or less the same outfit he had on earlier, with the addition of a gaudy blue trench coat with the collar popped up, multiple pairs of silver rings and earrings and a red (clip-on?) tie. Hijiriido, on the other hand, was dressed extremely casually, from what could be seen, on account of her diminutive frame: a slightly oversized t-shirt that gradually turned from white to grey to black the further down you went, in addition to a silver necklace with a cross pendant and, oddly enough, her signature hat. Compared to Sakaido, who was dressed in a simple white button-up and black trousers combo, and Ayako, who, having come straight from work, was still in her uniform, the two seemed like they'd walked out of an action thriller and a children's fashion magazine respectively.

"What are you two doing here?" he asked again.

"How can you say that, brother?! We're here to celebrate your freedom!" Anaido said, jabbing at him with the same hand he held his drink in, causing the liquid to slosh dangerously. "Oh, and don't worry about money, I know you're tight at the moment. I'm paying for myself, and Hijiriido's daddy gives her allowance, so she's also fine," he finished with a smile, preemptively glancing at the predictably furious Hijiriido.

"Come on! I haven't called him that in years!"

"Whaaat? What about earlier when you were talking about texting him?"

"I-I... that's an... umm... an inside joke!"

"An inside joke?"

"Yeah! It's actually really funny, you know!"

While the other two continued their back and forth, Sakaido turned to Ayako subtly, who was watching the couple opposite with a vested interest. "Why are these two here? I thought you told me this was gonna be a 'date'?"

"Ahaha, yeah, that's what I told you," Ayako said slyly. "Anaido found me on Instagram a few days ago, and we started talking."

"You've been talking behind my back?! Wait, did you give him my number?!"

"Only this morning! Anyway, after last night, I told him that I was going to take you out, and invited him to come to, especially since he came up with the idea of you being a freelancer."

"Wait, is that how you knew about that last night? He told you?" Sakaido blinked, unsure how to process things as Ayako giggled and nodded. He slowly looked over at the two opposite, still debating about the appropriateness of the word 'daddy'.

_That's why he was so shifty earlier. Also probably explains why he went to bed around the same time we did. But how did I miss her on her phone? Did she stay up later than me?_

"And let me guess, Hijiriido found you on Instagram too?"

"Oh no! Anaido just brought her with him when they showed up five minutes ago! She seemed fun, so I let her stay."

Having heard her name, Hijriido looked back at Sakaido, still red in the face from her heated discussion. "I'm sorry for imposing, Mr Sakaido. But when I heard what you did, I was so excited that I couldn't wait! I'm so happy for you!"

"Ah... appreciated..." Sakaido said, giving her a tired smile. "But you really don't have to-"

"She might have only come for congratulations," Anaido suddenly interrupted, leaning forward with a glint in his eye. "But I'm here with a proposition, Sakaido."

"A proposition?"

"Yeah. Where are you gonna base this business of yours, hmm?"

"I uh, haven't exactly-"

"Well today's your lucky day, my friend!" Anaido said, standing up in his excitement and drawing the attention of everyone else until Hijiriido dragged him back down. "Did you know that I have an office in my shop? Since I live right above, I only use it for storage and do most of my accounting and crap at home. But, as a little favour, I wouldn't be opposed to-"

"Wait, are you offering to rent me your office?"

Anaido deflated slightly, having clearly wanted to say so himself, a bit of his awkwardness beginning to return. "Well, yeah. If you want to, I don't mind."

"We don't really have much space in our flat, Naru," Ayako chimed in. "And this way, you can still feel like you're going into work, instead of just lazing around the house with a laptop!"

"That would be SO cool! A bookshop and a detective, it sounds like something straight out of a novel!" Hijiriido fawned.

Overwhelmed, Sakaido spluttered for a few seconds before he was able to organise coherent thoughts. "Wait wait wait! Let me get a word in! Can we even afford to rent an office?"

"Not to worry, brother," Anaido reassured. "I'm not that desperate for money. We can definitely reach a reasonable agreement."

"But... I... just... why?!" Sakaido eventually spat out, exasperated. Anaido laughed at him, but the slight shift of his eyes and a barely noticeable blush belied the insecurity underneath. Sakaido could practically hear his thoughts as he started second-guessing himself, wondering if he'd overstepped someone's boundaries again without knowing.

"W-Well, I wanna help you. Uh, yeah. Umm. Aha." Scratching the side of his head rapidly, Anaido tried to keep up his swiftly-crumbling nonchalance as he looked nervously at Sakaido, eagerly gauging his reaction. For his part, Sakaido also seemed mildly uncomfortable, coughing a few times before starting his next sentence.

"I uh, thanks. Thank you, Anaido. You don't have to do any of this, but thanks. You're a good guy," he said, locking eyes with the other man, who gave a toothy smile in response. Sakaido chuckled nervously and tried to copy it.

"Are you two always like this? Because if so, I want to see more of it." The two men looked over to see Ayako staring at them, head comfortably resting in her palm as she watched them with an invested smile.

"Nah, usually they're a bit more adversarial," Hijriido chimed in, before frowning as another thought popped into her head. "Although, I have only seen them interact once. So would it be right of me to say so? Or would that fall under inductive reasoning?"

"Let's just eat already! The waiter's been glaring at us for like, five minutes! They'll probably kick us out soon!" Grabbing his menu, Sakaido began flipping through it to distract himself. Glancing over at Anaido, he was somewhat comforted to see that he too was embarrassed, holding the menu up to his face to try and hide his red cheeks.

"Right! We better hurry up. Can't have Hijiriido here out too late!" Ayako said, much to the girl in question's chagrin.

"Ugh! I swear, does every adult act like this? I'm eighteen! I can go to bed when I want!

"Oh, I remember when I was your age! Don't worry, we all thought the same!"

"Ahem, I like to think I 'thought' quite differently at that age."

"You're not helping, Anaido! Defend me for once!"

Peeking up from his menu to glimpse at the chaos happening at his table, Sakaido couldn't help but smile.

_I don't know what I did in a past life to deserve this, but thank god I did. I hope we can have more of these moments. Or if not, then at least let this one last. Hopefully that isn't too much to ask for..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The subtitle comes from the song "Other Side" by MIYAVI. Also, read "The Haunting of Hill House". Is good book.


	11. Restart; or, Marriage and Such Consultation

"Ugh...!" With a throaty groan, Anaido let the box slip from his fingertips and gently hit the floor. Standing back up, he let out a huff as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, his half-undone shirt sticking to him somewhat.

"I swear, you're so overdramatic," Sakaido said from underneath the desk, plugging in the desk lamp. After doing so, he lifted his head up and stood on his knees, leaning his arms on the desk. "You bring in everything from the car?"

"Yeah, 'Master', I did," Anaido replied, tugging at his shirt to alleviate the heat. "I did say to make the place your own, but come on, man!"

"We did this over three days! You act like we did it all in five minutes." Getting to his feet, Sakaido walked over to the box Anaido had dropped on the floor and picked it up, plopping it on the desk.

"I swear, I have no idea how you can work in that ridiculous getup," Anaido teased, grabbing one end of Sakaido's scarf and tossing it at his back.

"Says the guy who walked into a restaurant with a blue trenchcoat and bright red boots! You looked like some kind of neon detective."

"I'll take that as a compliment!"

Sighing, Sakaido took out his laptop and placed it on the desk. Rummaging around, he found a framed picture of Ayako and him at their graduation, their arms around each other, smiling and waving at the camera. If he was remembering correctly, Ayako's father had taken the picture.

_Shit, that reminds me! I still need to tell my parents about this! Dammit, how are they gonna take this?_

Filing that conundrum away for later, Sakaido placed the picture on the far end of the desk, and put the box down to go through later. Turning around, he looked the office over. It was pretty barebones; barring the desk and what was on it, the only other noteworthy features were the coffee table in the middle, a small sofa on the door's right-hand side against the wall, and of course, the door itself.

_Still, it's a start. It's mine. My own office. It's already better than any place I could have had with the force._

"The new sign is gonna take awhile to come, I think... another week," Anaido said, scratching the back of his head as he looked around. "Until then, I just stuck a sheet on the window. Hope you don't mind."

"You've done more than enough for me, Anaido," Sakaido replied, giving him an appreciative smile. "Seriously. Thank you, for all this." Anadio responded with a toothy grin.

"What are friends for?" he said, his arms open as if he was expecting a hug. If so, then he was certainly disappointed when Sakaido instead went to the near corner of the room and dragged the wooden chair behind the desk. Plopping himself on it, he winced when the chair creaked uncomfortably.

"I see you're dedicated to the aesthetic."

"Aesthetic's my middle name, sweetheart," Anaido quipped as Sakaido rubbed his eyes, suddenly struck with a bout of weariness. "So, now that we've got you moved in, what's next?"

"Well, I suppose now we just wait. I found someone online, 'Shitaido'. She designed a website for me, and I've been plugging that everywhere I can, so hopefully I get something."

"My, commissioning someone to design a website, promoting said website AND paying me rent? That last paycheque must have been riddled with bonuses."

"Actually, it was."

"... oh. Huh."

Sakaido exhaled harshly through his nostrils, leaning his forehead against his arched hands.

"Uraido... the bastard wanted me out of the force, no doubt. But then he gives me all these bonuses for 'outstanding service'. I tried reporting it, but nobody at the office would answer my calls. It's like he's trying to _help_ me go freelance. Like he knows what I'm doing. Even if he was going to pay me any attention after I quit, I'd assume he would do everything he could to try and crush me. I could never get inside that guy's head, no matter how much I tried. He's spoiling this whole thing for me..." Closing his eyes, Sakaido let out another deep sigh. Anaido watched him with an unusually tense expression, taking in every aspect of Sakaido's frame, before suddenly clapping, startling the man. 

"Save your thinking for someone who deserves it, Sakaido," he said with a warm smile. "It's getting late. Go ahead and turn in for the night."

"Aha... yeah, alright. Probably not gonna get any calls when I haven't even plugged the phone in." Lightly slapping his face, Sakaido stood up. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Remember! I open at about seven, usually a few minutes before, but be sure to show up by then at least."

"I know I know. Speaking of time though, you could do with a clock or something. Actually, I should probably get one to put in here," Sakaido commented, lacing at a bare space on the wall and missing Anaidio quickly dig his fingernails into his neck. 

"Ahaha! If you _reeeally_ want one..." he laughed, turning to the side slightly to hide the scratches. "But for now, get out and get some rest, man."

"Yeah, yeah, I'll go," Sakaido said, walking past Anaido, thankfully on the opposite side to where he had clawed. "See ya in the morning, Anaido. And thanks again."

"Any time, brother!" Anaido waved cheerily as Sakaido left the office and past the counter into the book shop. He lowered his hand, but kept up the smile until he heard the door shut. Letting out a shaky sigh, he let his posture slip slightly, his smile shrinking as he rubbed his neck, the marks already starting to burn.

"Might have overdone it that time. It's fine though. It's fine. It's fine. This is fine. This is-"

Anaido was interrupted by his phone, which buzzed in his pocket once. His smile thinning, already predicting what it was, he pulled it out and turned it on. A message. From Sakaido. He clicked on the notification and unlocked his phone.

_**Sakaido (BB)** _

_Hey, if you need any help with, you know, stuff, I'm happy to help. I'm no therapist, but I'm great at listening! Er, I think! ^^ Goodnight!_

Anaido let his jaw go slack when he realised he'd started biting his tongue. Gulping, his fingers shook as he typed his reply.

_cheers brother! I'm fine, promise! you just worry about yourself. don't spare a thought for me, i got plenty already! ahaha_

* * *

"Huh, you weren't lying. Why do you get up so early if you stay up so late?" Sakaido asked, pushing open the door, surprised to see it already unlocked.

"It's not like I have a reason to sleep in." Anaido shrugged, yawning as he propped his feet up on the counter, managing to slap on a tired grin. "Ready for your first day of work, tenant?"

"Nah, I'm not expecting much. Frankly, I'll be lucky if I get a prank call!" 

"Well, good luck with business."

"Aha, you too!" Sakaido walked past, slapping Anaido's outstretched hand in greeting as he stepped into his office. "Oh hey, you plugged the phone in! You didn't have to do that."

"Eh, I got bored, and I hadn't seen an old wired one like that in forever. Now go on, get to work, brilliant detective!"

"You're gonna give me an ego if you keep calling me that." Anaido responded by blowing him a kiss and winking. Rolling his eyes, Sakaido shut the door, signalling the start of his first day as a freelance detective.

* * *

"Chill, brother! It's only the second day, you gotta give it time to pick up."

"What are you talking about? I know that!"

"I can hear you pacing back and forth."

The pacing stopped briefly, and a few seconds later the door opened, revealing a slightly embarrassed Sakaido.

"For the record, I'm a very active person. I was just... keeping my heart rate up."

"What are you, a senior citizen?" Anaido teased, flipping through a new delivery of books. "You gotta be patient, otherwise you'll just-oh, hey! Udeido! Long time! Did you enjoy _Titus_?" Anaido gave a quick thumbs-up as he moved to greet his customer. Sighing, Sakaido retreated back into the office.

* * *

"Not that I don't appreciate your company, but uh... don't you have anything better to do than sit here with two older men?" Sakaido asked, looking up from his laptop.

"I swear to god you and Anaido are the same," Hijiriido sighed, an unamused look on her face as she slouched further on the sofa. "I may as well not come if I'm gonna be treated like this."

"I was kidding! Kidding!" Sakaido reassured with a nervous grin. 

"Hmph. I'll have you know people always say I act older than I am, so in terms of mental age, you aren't much older than me."

"Your text messages beg to differ," Sakaido said, smirking when Hijriido cringed and covered her eyes.

"That's...! Uh... moving on! How's life as a freelance detective?"

"Ah... well, I don't have Uraido lording over me, so that's an automatic plus," Sakaido joked, his smile not quite reaching his eyes. "Still, I can't lie, it's a little anxious. I know that I shouldn't be expecting much for a while, but I am worried. I suppose that's the danger of being self-employed."

"You just gotta keep at it!" Hijiriido encouraged, flipping over so that she was now lying on the sofa like it was her bed. "Everything seems hard when you first start, but I bet it's gonna grow into something awesome! Imagine it: you could like, a modern-day Sherlock that even the police come to for advice!"

"Wasn't Sherlock a crack addict?"

"The details don't matter! It's the image! Ahhh, you're gonna be so cool! I'm jealous!" Hijriido squealed, waving her arms and legs about until she let out a gasp, all motion stopping instantly. "Do you think... that you could hire _me_ as your partner?!"

"My what?"

"Oh my gosh! That would be amazing!" she cried, jumping to her feet. "I could be your-! Well, no, Watson isn't really much of a detective, he's more of a bystander... but whatever! I could help you solve cases, I'd be like your sidekick or something!"

"Wait wait wait wait!" Sakaido interpreted, waving his hands to try and bring Hijiriido back down to Earth. "I can barely afford to pay Anaido rent and keep my website up, let along have an employee!"

"I'll be an intern, I don't mind!"

"Huuuuuu..... you really are dedicated, aren't you," Sakaido said, shaking his head with a weary laugh. "It's part inspiring and part infuriating."

"Honestly, it would be so cool if more people like you went freelance! We could see a detective renaissance!"

"Those are some big words, Hijiriido, and I wouldn't bet on them. People aren't just gonna up and quit their stable jobs to do the same thing, but much riskier."

"But maybe you could start something! A movement!"

"Alright, that's enough! Let me work," Sakaido said, ending the conversation with a dismissive wave. Hijiriiod pouted, crossing her arms in defiance as she puffed out her cheeks.

"What are you doing anyway? I thought you didn't have any work." A single bead of sweat rolled down Sakaido's neck, and he quickly closed Instagram and opened up his e-mails. 

"Don't you have school or something?"

"Bite me."

* * *

_Dear Mr. Uraido, I wish to apologise for my resignation, as well as the horribly crude and disgusting manner in which I tendered it, and humbly request that you employ me once again. I have learned from fuck youkkkkkkkkdfffffkjfhebhadss_

Slapping the keyboard in exasperation, Sakaido deleted the document, massaging his forehead violently.

_What am I doing? It's only been five days. I can't expect instant results. But I'm gonna have to expect something at some point. When will that point be? A week? Three? A month? I can't pay Anaido to just let me sit in his office and do nothing!_

"You look stressed, brother." Looking up, Sakaido watched as Anaido stood in a doorway, two steaming cups in his hand. With a smile, he crossed the room, handing one off to Sakaido, who nodded gratefully and took a sip. He grimaced slightly

"You know I don't like sugar, right?"

"Ah. Shit." Anaido slapped his head thrice, wincing apologetically. "Sorry, Hijriido comes here sometimes, so whenever I make two I'm used to making one with sugar. Want mine?"

"Nah, it's fine," Sakaido said, taking another sip. "Hijriido comes around often, huh?"

Anaido shrugged, taking a massive swig. "Yeah. I thought it was weird at first, but now it's almost second nature. Poor kid's a little lonely, hmm?"

"Hmm. Hey, do you think she's into... you know..."

"You know...?"

"Ahaha, never mind..." Deciding to tackle this topic another day, Sakaido busied himself with another sip. Anaido stared at him with an unreadable face, and for a moment Sakaido wondered if he had realised that he had been referring to. If he did, he also chose to let it slide, letting out a dismissive noise and taking another gulp. "So, how was work?"

"Not bad. I had five people in at once today. New record," Anaido answered, holding up five fingers.

"I know that five looks like, Anaido."

"Oh, don't we all," Anaido said, an ominous glint in his eye. "What about you, hmm? Are we booming yet?" Sakaido snorted, sipping his tea and glaring at the wall. "Ahaha! Nothing again? What is this, the fifth day in a row? Oh, maybe that's your lucky number! Five!"

"You don't have to laugh about it, ass..."

"Come on, man. You think I got a stable consumer base in just a week?" Anaido brushed some dust off the phone, having sat untouched until now. "You gotta be patient with this sort of thing. With a lot of things actually. I should know. I spent a year in the hospital."

"That you did. Hey. You know how you set you said a bookshelf collapsed on you? I checked them, and I don't see-"

"Aw crap! I finished already! I'm gonna head and get some more tea," Anaido suddenly interrupted, spinning around and taking massive steps towards the door.

"Hey! Wait I-"

"See ya tomorrow, brother! Be sure to lock up!" Anaido called over his shoulder as he threw himself out of the office and bounded upstairs, leaving a slightly dumbfounded Sakaido.

_Anaido... Dammit. Why won't you talk?_

* * *

When the phone started to ring, Sakaido jumped like someone had shot a gun next to his ear. His limbs flailing around, he launched practically launched himself at the phone, clawing it out of its socket and jamming it against his ear, somehow ending up on his knees leaning against the desk for support in the process.

"Hello, this is Private Investigator Sakaido speaking. How may I help you?" Sakaido said, the rehearsed, professionally delivered introduction clashing with his dishevelled appearance. 

_"Um, hello. Are you willing to take a job?"_ Came the timid female voice on the other end.

"Of course, miss! Just describe the nature of... of what you want, if you can." Getting back up, Sakaido smoothed his clothes over, trying to keep his excitement out of his voice.

_"Well, it's my husband you see. He's been coming home far later than usual with these odd smells about him. He always tells me that it's just the food from when he goes out with his colleagues, but... oh, I hate to assume the worst, but...!"_

"Aha, I understand, miss," Sakaido missed, trying to suppress his disappointment.

 _Come on, what_ were _you expecting, a drug bust? I need to pay less attention to Hijiriido. Focus!_

"Well, do you mind if I talk about my rates first, ma'am? If they're within your comfort zone, then we can continue talking about your husband."

* * *

"Have a nice day!" Anaido said as he waved his first customer of the day goodbye. Fanning himself with his hand, he huffed as he sat down. "Really need to invest in a-"

"I'mofftomeetaclintseeyoulatermightnotcomebackbye!" The door to the office blasting open, Sakaido spewed a bunch of gibberish before running out of the shop, powering down the street at full speed. Anaido sat there, blinking slowly as his brain caught up with what happened, before cracking a smile and kicking his feet up, reaching over to grab an apple.

"Good going, brother."

* * *

Hearing the front door open, Ayako paused the TV and checked her watch.

_01:02_

"Naru? Are you alright? How was it?" she asked as she got to her feet and hurried into the hallway. Turning towards the door, she found Sakaido standing there, fully dressed and drenched in sweat, a tired but proud smile on his face. "Naru?"

"Well... I left a hell of a domestic in my wake," he said with a small laugh as he lifted his hand, revealing a cheque for 35,000 yen between his fingers. "But it was fucking worth it..."

"Oh, Naru!" Overjoyed, Ayako ran over to Sakaido and embraced him. "I knew if you just kept at it, you'd win!" Sighing, as if a weight had been removed from his shoulders, Sakaido returned the hug, leaning into Ayako as she supported him. "I couldn't be more proud of you, my brilliant detective!"

_Brilliant detective... coming from her... that doesn't sound too bad..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It occurred to me while writing this chapter that I probably should have added a self-harm tag about seven or eight chapters ago. Better late than never.
> 
> The subtitle is based on "Spirits and Such Consultation Office", the business run by Arataka Reigen in Mob Psycho 100.
> 
> 舌井戸  
> 腕井戸. Guess who, and you get a sense of pride and accomplishment.


	12. Establishment; or, I'll be Lucky Someday

"Welcome back, partner!" Anaido said, waving from his counter as Sakadio walked in, tugging at his scarf. "Hey, how come you've ditched the jacket, but not the scarf?"

"Well, at this point I like to think of it as part of my branding," Sakaido shrugged, undoing the long piece of cloth and letting it hang off one shoulder like a sash as he approached the counter.

"Speaking of the brand, how was the job? It was with some restaurant, right?"

Leaning against the nearest bookcase, Sakaido nodded, a few beads of sweat still running down his face. "Yeah, it was mostly just to confirm a few things, like the times of everything and what specific person was were, stuff like that. I was basically just relaying everything to the solicitor. I should be getting paid by the end of the day."

"See, this is why I never hired! As if I'd ever trust some rando with my finances!" Anaido said, kicking up his feet and spreading his arms as if he was saying something obvious. 

"Come on. Hijiriido is basically a part-timer with how much time she spends here."

"She's not an employee, she's just lonely."

"I heard that, hypocrite!" Hijiriido shouted from somewhere behind the open door leading up to Anaido's flat, catching Sakaido off-guard.

"When did she get here?"

"Uh... an hour ago... maybe two...?"

"You really need to get a watch, man..."

"Actually, I only got here about twenty minutes ago," Hijiido corrected, descending the stairs and stepping into the shop with a full glass of water, walking in a very deliberate way to make sure it didn't spill. "I came here to rent a few books and then leave, but there's no way I'm walking back in that heat! Speaking of, here!" she said, holding the glass of water out for Sakaido.

"Hm, that's nice of you," Sakaido noted, somewhat surprised as he took it, taking a grateful sip.

"Guess I'm not a psychopath after all, huh?" Hijiriido asked, crossing her arms smugly as Sakaido nearly gagged on the water.

"I...! I didn't call you a psychopath!"

"You absolutely did! Don't think I forgot about it!"

"Parden me for being out of the loop," Anaido interrupted. "But what are we talking about? Also, did you offer him water using one of _my_ glasses? Without asking?"

"Don't worry about it, it's nothing, just something from when we met," Hijiriido dismissed, rolling her eyes. "And yeah, of course, I used your glasses. Did you expect me to bring my own?"

"Psssssyyyyyyychoooooooopaaaaaaaath~~!" Anadio crooned, pointing at her.

"I'm not a-!" Hijiriido started, before groaning, rubbing her eyes, and turning her back on Anaido. "So, Mr. Sakaido, how's the business doing?" Sakaido smirked at her attempt to force a subject change, as did Anaido, but went along with it anyway.

"Well, there've only been three jobs so far, but honestly, I'm just glad I've had more than one," he admitted. "The jobs I'm getting requests for are nothing like the ones I got as a detective on the force: cheating spouses, employees stealing cash, it's comparatively more petty and small stuff, but... I don't know. It's kinda nice to be dealing with real people's everyday problems, at least every now and then."

"Huh. What kind of cases did you usually do? Homicide, right?" Anaido asked, crossing his arms.

"Yeah, those were the types I usually dealt with. At least, until I inevitably got taken off them," Sakaido said, finishing the last of the water and letting his hands hang by his sides, a strained smile on his lips as he stared at nothing in particular. 

"Hmph, and to think I used to really respect Uraido. What he did was unforgivable," Hijiriido huffed, crossing her arms

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but..." Anaido interjected, lifting his legs off the counter and leaning on his elbows on it in one swift motion. "... nothing's stopping you from investigating those same cases on your own, right?" Hearing this, Hijiriido gasped, looking over at Sakaido expectantly, who shrugged casually.

"Well, technically no, BUT!" he said quickly, holding up his hand when Hijiriido opened her mouth. "But, it's going to be much harder without excess to evidence and the resources of the police."

"I didn't hear a denial, brother~!" Sakaido grunted, raising his eyebrows in amusement as he looked over at Anaido, who gave him a wry smirk and a wink. "I've seen the post-it notes you leave all over the office. Should really clean that up by the way."

"I never did know when to stop for my own good," Sakaido admitted with a breathy chuckle. "Most of the cases I got handed are done. Open-and-shut. I might not like Uradio, but his skills as a detective are undeniable. But there's one case he solved that I could never get over, even if they found the guy they say did-"

"The Hayaseura Case! It's the Hayaseura Case, right?!" Hijiriido suddenly yelled, her hand up in the air like a student begging to be picked, startling both men in the room, though Anaido recovered quickly with a hearty laugh.

"I swear, you've made me age twenty years..." Sakaido muttered, putting the empty glass on the counter before he accidentally dropped it. "Not surprised you guys have heard about it though."

"Well duh! It's all anyone could talk about for months! It was all over the news!"

"Uhhhh..." Mimicking Hijiriido and raising his hand, Anaido sheepishly drew attention back to himself. "Is this a bad time to admit I don't know what happened?" he asked, grinning awkwardly when Sakaido and Hijiriido stared blankly at him. "Come on! I don't watch the news! All I knew is that some rich family died, and that a couple weeks ago they found the killer!"

"Anaido, you've got to pay attention to these kinds of things!" Hijiriido admonished, hands on her hips with an almost motherly demeanour, something Sakaido found highly amusing. He opened his mouth to say something, only to be interrupted by the shop door swinging open and a young woman in a business suit barging in.

"Hi, am I interrupting, or...?"

"Not at all, ma'am!" Anaido exclaimed, getting to his feet with a smile and walking over to her, though not without mouthing the word "later", to Sakaido. "Are we here for something in particular, or my personal recommendation?" Giving Anaido an understanding wink, Sakaido turned and opened the door to his office.

"What about you, Hijiriido? Planning on staying?"

"Nah," she shrugged, looking over at Anaido, then back up the stairs to his flat. "I don't wanna distract him. Besides, I feel like as long as I stay here today, I'm just gonna be thinking about this stupid glass," she said, grabbing the empty glass she'd offered to Sakaido off the desk. 

"Aww, look at you, learning shame. Maybe empathy is up next, Little Miss Psy-"

"It stopped being funny when Anaido said it. Don't dig up a corpse, Sakaido," Hijiriido deadpanned, spinning on her heel and disappearing up the stairs. 

"Aha, miiiiight have been a bit too far that one..." Sakaido bashfully admitted, stepping into his office and closing the door behind him.

"So... are those your... tenants?" the woman asked, having watched the entire exchange with a confused expression.

"Let's just say yes and move on, hm?" Anaido whispered, quickly pulling out a book to distract her. 

* * *

"Knock knock," Anaido said, opening the door without knocking. "I'm closing the... whoa." With a laugh, he stepped into the dark office, the only light coming from the shop and Sakaido's laptop, which he sat hunched over, his shoulders pulled up to the point where Anaido subconsciously straightened his posture. Noticing him, Sakaido looked up from the screen and sat up, making a face as his back clicked.

"Mmm... is it nine already?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Pretty sure this isn't very good for you, brother," Anaido noted, avoiding the question as he flicked on the light, sniggering when Sakaido winced at the sudden influx of light. "What have you been doing?"

"Not too much. Exchanging a few final notes with the client, making sure I got paid, spoke with Shitaido a bit about marketing... oh, and got my first dud call. That was nice."

"Ooo, do tell~," Anaido asked, flopping down onto the sofa and crossing his legs. 

"Eh, just some kid, must have found the website through one of the ads I put up yesterday. Something about his dog going missing or something. Felt bad for him, but those aren't the kind of 'cases' that I wanna be known for," Sakaido said, closing his laptop.

"Right. You wanna be known for bigger things. Things like... the Hayaserua Case?"

"My, aren't you subtle?" Sakaido joked, getting to his feet and joining Anaido on the sofa, who shuffled over to give him space. "What exactly do you want to know?"

"Uhm, everything!" Anaido laughed. "Again, all I know is that some rich family got wiped, and that they found the killer a couple weeks ago. But from what you were gonna say earlier, it sounds like there's a whole lot more to things."

"Well, you've got that right," Sakaido said, leaning back with a sigh. "The Hayaseura family are - well, were - old money. Very old. They were part of the _kuge_ at the end of the 8th century, and came back to power during the Meiji Era when the _kazoku_ was established. After that was abolished after the war, they still held onto a bunch of money, and managed to keep up a bit of influence with investments and such. They had a few authors as well. I think I saw one of them in the shop, actually."

"... _Eternal Rail_ , 1979, Minato Hayaseura, right?"

"Yeah, that's it. Anyway, on the 7th of July, 2007, the Hayaseura's held this private charity event at the family estate, which included damn-near every single member of the family, as well as a few dozen celebrities and even a few retired politicians. The event was supposed to wrap up around midnight, but by the next day, none of the guests had returned home. When someone went around to check, they found everyone dead. All a hundred and thirty-eight attendees, plus all the staff that were in the building. Oh, and the initial people who found them? They died too, bringing to total death toll to just under a hundred and eighty." Sakaido glanced over at Anaido briefly, hoping to gauge a reaction, but all he had to work with was a blank, unreadable expression. Noticing that he was being watched, Anadio briefly locked eyes with him, before returning to staring at the opposite wall. Breathing hard through his nostrils, Sakaido continued.

"It was determined that everyone who entered the house had died of sarin poisoning, and the incident was treated as a bioterrorist incident, but it took a little while longer for them to find out how exactly it was used. As it turned out, multiple sarin canisters had been built _into_ the walls, connected to a remote controller. When released, the gas escaped through small, barely noticeable holes in the wall and slowly filled the entire building. Took ages to defume the place."

"And tell me, how exactly did someone manage to sneak those in?" Anaido asked suddenly, causing Sakaido to jump slightly.

"Well, for the past decade and a bit, the Hayaseura estate had been undergoing heavy renovation. The building's nearly four hundred years old, and it was really started to show its age by then. So in 1994 they started a massive renovation in partnership with a company they heavily invested in: Shiza, which declared bankruptcy a few years after the massacre." Sakaido was about to continue, when he suddenly stopped, his brow furrowed, before turning to Anaido. "Are you _sure_ you didn't hear about this?"

"I was _ten_ , brother, give me a break!" Anaido protested, throwing his arms over the back of the sofa with a small, toothy smile. "You should be more concerned about Hijiriido, she couldn't have been older than five or six! What five-year-old watches the news?!"

"Alright alright, fair point," Sakaido said, rubbing the back of his neck with a brief laugh, before adopting a more serious expression once again as he continued. "Anyway, by the time I joined the case, we're still tracking down everyone who used to work for Shiza, I interviewed a few of... actually, I think I might have interviewed the most. Not that it mattered. By the time I was taken off a year later, we'd gone through almost everyone, and the case was all but abandoned."

"Until a few weeks ago, right?"

"Yeah." A dark look briefly passed over Sakaido's face, not long enough to linger, but it made Anaido tense up a bit before relaxing again. "Apparently a former project manager, Niseido, confessed to sneaking in the canisters himself before having them covered up by his workers, threatening to fire them if they didn't comply. He's not naming them out of respect, supposedly, but testimony from some of those who worked under him corroborates what he's saying."

"Huh. So... what's the issue?" Anaido asked, only to lean back in surprise when Sakaido turned towards him, his eyes wide and his entire face in a state of tension.

"Because _I_ interrogated Niseido, and I know for a fact that there's something more to this." All of a sudden Sakaido stood up and began pacing around the room at a leisurely pace, his hand rubbing his chin in thought. "If there's one thing I pride myself on, it's being able to read people. It's... a sort of talent, at the risk of sounding cocky," he said, ignoring Anaido's humoured snort. "I got an odd feeling about the guy. The way he acted and answered certain questions gave him this suspicious vibe, but it was... odd."

"Odd, huh? How so?"

"I've spoken with guilty suspects before; I actually got a broken nose once when one session went particularly bad. And he was definitely different. He was very uneasy, I could practically see the shame dripping off him. But there was this weird fear about him. Most people are afraid, obviously, but they're always afraid of me, or the other officers in the room. He just seemed scared of... something. In fact, when he first saw me, he almost looked relieved to see me and the others."

"Could he have been expecting something, or someone else?" Sakaido stopped his pacing to see that Anaido had at some point stood up and made his way over to the desk, which he was presently leaning against with his arms crossed.

"Yeah, maybe. I didn't have a lot of time with him, since we had a lot of people to go through, but I had him stay at the station just in case while I talked to my superiors."

"Lemme guess. One of them was-"

"Uraido," Sakaido confirmed. "He had Niseido released that night, but promised me that he'd follow up with him for me. A few days later, just as I was about to bring it up with him, I was taken off the case and transferred to a different one."

"Now THAT'S subtlety."

"Tell me about it."

"Tell me more about this Niseido guy. Does he even have a motive, maybe a disgruntled employee seeking revenge." 

"Look at you, detective," Sakaido remarked somewhat sarcastically, prompting a dry chuckle from Anaido. "That's another thing, I can't really think of a decent motive for him. The guy has a decent paid, no political leanings that would suggest he's particularly radical, and no prior criminal record either."

"Well, maybe he just wanted to kill people."

"No." The word came quick, almost harshly. "It takes a specific type of person to just _want_ to kill people. Trust me, I know. He wasn't like that. Most people aren't.

"So, to recap..." Anaido said, stepping away from the desk. "We have an elaborate mass-murder case, supposedly performed by someone doesn't seem to have wanted to do it, and you, when about to hone in on said person, were taken off the case by Uradio, only for the guy to end up getting arrested a couple of years later anyway."

"Well summarised," Sakaido complemented. "But we don't know why he suddenly decided to confess out of nowhere, and what really went on behind the scenes. I even saw a few people in the media expressing some scepticism."

"And of course, how does our old friend Uraido fit in with this," Anaido added. "It honestly wouldn't surprise me if he ended being more tangled in this than might be expected."

Sakaido shook his head. "All that's speculation right now. We can't make statements like that at this point."

"Ahaha! I suppose," Anaido chuckled, scratching at his neck. "Perhaps we should speculate some more tomorrow?" Sakaido flicked his wrist out and looked at his watch.

"Yeah, you're right. Sorry to keep you, I know you came in here to shut shop," he apologised, already headed over to his desk to gather his things. "Thanks for letting me go off though, I've needed to get these things off my chest for awhile now."

"No problem, brother," Anaido reassured, snapping his fingers at Sakaido and winking. "It was pretty fun, almost felt like an actual detective."

"You know, considering you only just found out most of this stuff, I'd say you did a pretty okay job of playing the part," Sakaido said with a wink of his own. 

"Then consider me your partner in crime. I'll admit, you've got me invested in this, even if we end up going nowhere." Extending his hand, Anaido raised an eyebrow, a sly smirk growing on his face. "A pleasure, detective." Letting out a laugh, Sakaido shook his head at Anaido with a poorly-suppressed grin, before reaching over and firmly grasping his hand.

"If you think you can run a bookshop at the same time, then this is a pleasure indeed."

"You know Hijiriido's gonna throw a fit when she finds out I got to you before her, right?"

"Oh yeah. Can't wait."

"Ahaha..."

* * *

_I didn't say goodbye to Mr. Sakaido yesterday. Hope he doesn't think I was being rude._

Glancing at the clock on her phone, Hijriido tucked it back into her pocket, readjusted her bag strap and kept on walking, stepping out of the main university building and down the path towards the large, impressive gates, expertly moving around the various pockets of friends without being noticed.

_Then again, he'll probably just call a "psycho" again. If that's the case, so what if he thinks I'm rude? Hmph!_

Wrinkling her nose, Hijriido lifted her head up pridefully, only to deflate a moment later.

_Oh, who am I kidding...? I'd die if he didn't like me anymore! Ugh, I'm such a simp!_

With a resigned sigh, Hijiriido put her hat back on, adjusting it so that the brims shielded her face and the back of her neck from the mid-day sun.

_My next lecture is in a few hours. If I get the bus, I should have time to pop in, say hi, have lunch, and then head back._

"Alright, let's go!" she said. Picking up her pace, Hijiriido lightly jogged the rest of the way down the path, mindful not to exert herself too much on account of the oppressive heat. Passing through the open gates, she immediately turned left and started down towards the bus stops.

"Headed to Book³, Miss?"

Screeching to a halt, Hijiriido stumbled slightly before turning around, her weight already on her heels, ready to start running again at the first sight of trouble, only to let out a gasp, a chill going down her back.

"You know, I used to go to this very university when I was your age," Uradio said, looking up at the gate with a nostalgic smile. Stepping away from the pillar he'd been leaning against, he turned his attention to Hijriido, his cane tapping forcefully against the pavement as he made his way towards her, smoothing over his crimson long coat, apparently unfazed by the sun overhead. With a derisive smile, he stopped in front of Hijiriido, who stood rigid, her eyes wide as she looked him up and down, the recognition evident in her expression.

"Hope you don't mind if we have a little chat, do you? Oh, and by the way... is your name 'Miyo', by any chance?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Subtitle is from the song "I'll Be Lucky Someday", by Glen Campbell.
> 
> 偽 / Nise means "fake". Bonus points for guessing who this one's supposed to be.


	13. Five Minutes; or, From The Other Side II

"Hope you don't mind if we have a little chat, do you? Oh, and by the way... is your name 'Miyo', by any chance?"

With a shallow breath, Hijiriido took a step back, her expression morphing from shocked to furious.

"Don't you _dare_ come any closer...!" she hissed, keeping her voice low, but her tone hostile. Uradio let out a puff of air from his nostrils, suggesting he found her antics amusing.

"I assure you, Miss Miyo, I have no poor intentions behind me meeting you," he said, taking a step towards her. In response, Hijiriido took yet another one backwards, her hand on her back pocket where her phone was, glaring at him.

"I said don't come closer, you fake, or else!" she threatened. Unfortunately, her attempts at intimidation didn't seem to have much effect. If anything, they seemed to humour Uraido even more, the corners of his eyes creasing as he smiled at her, like an adult looking down at a child who'd just said something silly, a look that Hijiriido knew only too well, just making her angrier as she tried not to grit her teeth.

"Please, let's not try to make a scene," Uradio said, his eyeline darting to the side momentarily. After making sure that he wasn't about to leap forward and try something, Hijiriido looked around. Indeed, the people walking around them were giving confused, slightly unsettled looks, friends gossiping to each other, loners crossing the street just to avoid having to walk past them. With a sneer, she stepped to the side, letting people walk past them without having to go around them. A grin tugging at his lips, Uradio joined her, leaning against the wall casually, opposite Hijiriido, who bounced slightly on the balls of her feet, ready to move at a moments notice.

"What do you want, huh? Haven't you done enough to hurt Mr. Sakaido?!"

"Mr. Sakaido! Goodness, you're familiar, aren't you?" Uraido noted with a raised eyebrow. Hijiriido audibly swallowed, clenching her jaw as she realised her mistake. "I assure you I have no intention of damaging Sakaido's career. I simply wanted to ask you how he was doing."

"As if I'd believe that! But first of all, how do you even know we know each other? How did you know where my university is, and how did you know my name?!" Hijiriido demanded, pointing at Uradio accusingly, who just rolled his eyes at her.

"Please, don't act like there's some grand conspiracy here," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "I've seen you talking to him and the owner, Anaido from outside. I know your name from the review you left on Google, and when I checked your others, you mentioned in your review of the university that you lived here."

"I...! Fuuuuu....." Hijiriido growled, making a mental note to delete said review at the nearest possible opportunity. "It's still creepy that you stalked me online and just stood here waiting outside for me to come out. How did you know when I was gonna leave?"

"Please please please, Miss Miyo, I just-"

"Hijiriido!"

Uraido let out a bemused huff. "Miss _Hijiriido_ , I only want to check up on how my old colleague is doing. I understand that we didn't part on the most-"

"You dropped him from cases and stuck him with desk work!"

"I understand that my decisions have frustrated him," Uraido sighed, the grip on his cane tightening subtly. "But I truly did have his best interests at heart. And now that he's gone freelance, I want to make sure that he's going alright." Narrowing her eyes suspiciously, Hijriido stared hard at his face, looking for something in particular to pick on. The condescension was essentially dripping off him, but his words were irritatingly genuine and simple; nothing to read into.

_Shit...! I'm got good enough for this guy! I need to get out of here and tell Sakaido!_

"He's fine! Doing fine! Goodbye!" Wrinkling her nose, Hijiriido turned and started power-walking away. She kept this up for a few moments, until she heard footsteps behind her. Looking over her shoulder, she nearly shouted when she saw Uradio right behind her, keeping up with her at a leisurely pace. Noticing this, he gave her a small, tight smile that made her skin crawl.

"Since we're both headed there, why not make the journey together, Hijiriido?" he proposed. Shaking her head furiously, Hijiriido faced forward and continued her march to the bus stop.

"Don't bother. Soon, you'll be lucky to even catch a glimpse of me. Goodbye!"

* * *

The bus drove over a speed bump, catching Hijiriido off-guard, who leaned over to the left slightly, bumping into Uradio's shoulder. As soon as the two made contact, she shuffled back over as far away as she could, pressing her face against the window as if she was trying to push through the glass.

"You know, I once saw someone spit on one of those windows."

She knew he was just trying to get under her skin. Even so, she couldn't help but detach herself from the window, trying not to think of the smug grin that he most likely had. 

"Well then, what books are you planning on getting, Hijiriido?" For a moment, Hijriido considered just ignoring him. But then again, that had been her strategy for the past five minutes, and that had been a complete failure.

"Ugh, I'm not going for a book, I've already got plenty," she reluctantly said. "I'm just going to see Anaido and Sakaido for a little bit."

"Ha, goodness, such fast friends!" Uraido laughed, drawing the ire of a few other passengers. "Still though, for a young woman like yourself to be... ahem, _associating_ with men quite a bit older than yourself, I'd imagine there are a few rumours amongst your friends, no?" Hijiriido let out a single, shaky breath, her nostrils flared as she slowly turned her head and stared Uraido in the eye, sitting on her hands to stop them from flying out and slapping the man next to her.

"Yes, I AM a young woman. Keyword: _woman_ ," she seethed. "I can talk with whoever I want to for whatever reason I want to. And for the record, I trust those guys a lot more than I do you, _old man_." 

"Oh please, I'm only sixty-six," Uradio said, rolling his eyes in a show of mock hurt. "Still, I'm glad that you feel so safe around-"

"I don't need a babysitter, so shut up about it," Hijiriido interrupted, turning away and glaring out the window.

"Ah, I understand," Uradio chuckled, lurching forward slightly as they arrived at a bus stop. "So, to continue my earlier question, how is Sakaido doing these days?"

"I told you he's fine."

"How's the business doing? Has he gotten jobs yet?" he pressed, leaning in a bit closer, something Hijiriido didn't pick up on.

"Yeah, he's gotten three so far," Hijiriido mumbled somewhat absentmindedly. "I think he's also talking to two other people, but I don't know if stuff came out of it."

"Ahh, so he's doing well for himself, excellent," Uraido said. Hijiriido let out a noise in response, counting in her head how many more stops were left until Book³.

"Truth be told, I'd go freelance myself if I could."

"... huh?" Frowning, Hijiriido snapped out of her stupor. "What... did you say?"

"I said I'd love to be a freelance detective myself," Uraido said, looking at her with a smile. Not a smug sneer or a condescending smirk. Just a smile.

"You... would?" Leaning away from the window, Hijiriido sat up straight, facing Uraido with a hesitantly inquisitive look. 

"Of course I would! They're just... so cool!" Holding his hand to his heart, Uraido stared off at nothing in particular, a whimsical look on his face. "My mentor would tell me all about the days when being a detective meant living rough, but living proud. Beholden to no one, you took the cases you wanted, stalking the dead of night, duelling to bring society's work to justice, it built character! Sure, financial security was a bit less, aha, secure, but the unbridled freedom more than made up for it."

"Huh. Well, at least there's one thing we can agree on," Hijiriido said, her previously tense expression relaxing somewhat. "Growing up, I'd always read and watch those old noir films and books, they practically shaped my childhood."

"Any in particular?"

"Oh, um... one of the first ones I watched was _The Big Sleep_?" For the first time, Uraido seemed surprised, his eyebrows shooting up his forehead.

"The 1946 version or the 1978 version?"

"Ummm, the 78 version?"

"And you were how old?"

"Oh, I was five."

"Five?!"

"Fifteen! Fifteen! I meant fifteen!" Hijiriido spluttered, holding her hands over her red face. "I was just kidding! Of course I didn't watch it at five, pfff!"

"Ah... yes, of course..." Uradio said, his brow twisting at the thought of a five-year-old watching _The Big Sleep._

"My uhh... my dad goes overseas a lot and brings me a lot of gifts, so I've always been exposed to foreign films and books."

"Well, I suppose that makes sense." Not wanting to touch that subject any further, he moved back to their earlier one. "But yes, as I said earlier, I would have loved to go freelance myself."

"Well, why don't you? I'm sure The Great Uraido would have clients killing themselves to get a piece of you." Uraido laughed in response, running a gloved hand over his silky silver hair.

"Unfortunately, my time has passed. Nothing left more an old man like me to do but assimilate into the system, climb up the corporate ladder and hopefully scrape together enough to have a decent retirement. No, the future lies with people like Sakaido... and you... the youth who will reclaim what it means to be a detective."

"You... think I could be a freelance detective?" Hijiriido said, letting out a chuffed breath as Uraido winked at her.

"Trust me. I have an eye for talent."

* * *

"Hmmmm..." Anaido frowned, pressing his face against the window as he tried to peer up at the sun, attracting the gaze of more than a few curious onlookers, one even stopping to take a picture. "Hey, Sakaido! What time is it?!"

"..."

"Sakaido!" The door to the office opened this time, Sakaido poking his head around with a mildly annoyed look.

"I swear to God, I'll buy you a watch myself one of these days," he sighed. "It's 12:30, why?"

"Huh... Hijiriido should have been here... five minutes ago..." Stepping away from the glass, Anaido looked at the sweaty imprint he'd left with a bothered face. 

"Maybe it's just traffic, or she had something else. Listen, I'm skyping a client, so unless it's important, don't bug me, okay?" With that, Sakaido disappeared once more, leaving Anaido alone to his thoughts. Tapping his thigh with one hand, he pulled out his phone with the other and unlocked it. No new messages.

_Five... what a dull number..._


	14. Blatant Lies; or, Bunny-Eared Detectives

"So, you weren't kidnapped?"

_"No! I promise nothing bad happened to me, I honestly just forgot to call!"_

"Mmmhmm..." Kicking his feet up on the counter, Anaido poked his cheek with his tongue as he tossed his phone to his other hand. "So, what were you doing then?"

_"I didn't have as much time as I thought for lunch, and after my afternoon lecture I got distracted when my partner wanted some help with an essay."_

"Uh-huh. Who were they? I thought you didn't have many friends."

_"I-I...! That still means I have a few! Just some people I talk to after class!"_

"Okay okay! Got it, Sis!" Anaido said, holding up his free hand with a snigger. Hijiriido sighed on the other end.

_"Look... I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you guys soon. I could come tomorrow, or...?"_

"It's fine, show up when you like," Anaido reassured. "I gotta go now though, me and Sakaido are headed out for a drink."

_"Oh... okay. I'll see you later then."_

"Byyyyyyyyyye~!" Anaido then hung up, dropping his feet back on the floor and standing up. "Well, pretty sure she was lying," he said, looking over at Sakaido, who was lent against the door frame to his office with his jacket on.

"Don't overthink things too much. She probably made up some excuse so as not to sound rude. I've done the same a few times. Hell, because of you, I did it earlier today!"

"My, how naughty! Ahaha!" Anaido laughed, grabbing his coat from the back of his chair and sliding it on, kissing his teeth in annoyance when his ring got caught on the inner sleeve. "Tch, gotta get used to wearing jewellery again. Wasn't allowed any at the hospital."

"I still think we don't need to go. You could just as easily look at pictures of the place," Sakaido said, closing and locking the door to his office. Finally getting his arm through the sleeve, Anaido did up his buttons, popping his collar and giving a toothy grin. 

"Come on, a little light trespassing never hurt anyone!"

"Jesus, don't say it aloud!" Sakaido cringed, shaking his hand and walking towards the door, Anaido turning the lights off chuckling as he followed.

"So, you have a car? Or are we slumming it on the bus?" Anaido asked, stepping back slightly as Sakaido opened the door and flipped the "open" sign around. Rolling his eyes at the other man, he stepped out into the streets. Although it was already eight o'clock, the sun was still high enough to almost fool him into thinking it was afternoon; a sign of the season. He looked back at Anaido, who was locking the door behind him.

"It's better for the environment to use the bus. Besides, the journey will give me time to share my thoughts. Come on!" 

"Aha, always loved stories as a kid!" Anaido said, kicking his feet out as he descended the small flight of stairs. Shaking his head with a smile, Sakaido turned and began walking.

"I swear, you're such a bunny-eared lawyer."

"Taking that as a compliment!"

* * *

"So, I know I said that there's nothing wrong with a little trespassing, but uh... we won't actually go to prison, right?"

"Why, cold feet?" Sakaido teased, smirking at him for a moment, before resting his cheek on his hand and staring at the window, watching the dwindling crowds busy about, trying to get their business done in the dying sunlight. "Don't worry. Even before the case was officially shut, nobody ever went there. The estate agency tried to pick up some interested buyers, but, as you might expect, the nature of the attack made people extremely hesitant. In fact, I think sales of mansions have been down ever since. The estate agency still technically owns it, but it's de-facto been abandoned. The security system eventually broke down, and they only send someone up to check maybe once every few weeks. Basically, everyone pretends it doesn't exist and lets it rot."

"Ahh, I see," Anaido said, crossing his arm and leaning back in his seat, his gaze swimming across the bus, which was empty of anyone save for the driver, a young couple being _far_ too affectionate with each other several rows ahead and a man having a hushed argument with his phone even further ahead. "So, at most, we can expect a few homeless guys squatting about. Hmph, should have waited to have that shower then."

Sakaido frowned and chided him. "Don't joke about the homeless like that. We're all just a few bad days away from joining them." 

Anaido smiled and shrugged, tapping his feet periodically. "Wasn't joking; just said they stink." Sakaido sighed and looked back out the window. "Anyway, enough about tramps. It's not just me that finds this whole thing suspicious, right? I get that a massacre happened there, but after all this time, someone has to have show interest in doing something with it. I'm not one for big houses, but you'd think those rich types would be all over it. At the very least, let the council knock it down and build some animal reserve or something. But nothing?"

"No, you're not the only one, and it's not just that part of it that's suspicious," Sakaido said, closing his eyes. "Going back to Niseido, some people in the press called it out when he was declared the perp. Even ordinary people could tell that this guy just had no real connection or motive. Some even thought the police had just picked some random guy out of nowhere and paid him to take the fall so they could finally resolve the case."

Anaido snorted, a slightly smug sneer on his face. "Talk about blatant. Not even trying to hide it."

Sakaido snapped his fingers, opening his eyes and looking over at Anaido. "And THAT'S what's why I can't let this go. If he had been an actor with a realistic, invented motive, then that would be one thing. But how this was handled... it almost feels... intentional."

Anaido's sneer dropped, eyes eyebrows rasing a bit. "You think they deliberately tied it up in a shoddy way? Why would they do that? That does nothing but draw attention it it."

"And that's where I'm stuck. Why would Uraido and the metro not only let their reputation be muddied, but deliberately close the case with such a suspicious ending? Charging someone who doesn't have a real motive, abandoning the crime scene without even leaving any cameras... it makes no sense..." Covering the right side of his face with his hand, Sakaido's gaze dropped, staring intently at the seat in front of him. 

_Letting their image be tarnished like that, what could they...?_

"Hey, save some of that brain power! Come on," Anaido said, bumping Sakaido with his shoulder before standing up, peering out the window. "The stop's coming up."

"Hm, yeah," Sakaido nodded, following Anaido towards the door, carefully not to be thrown off balance by the motions of the bus. At some point the other passengers had left. "You know, I could have told you all that at the shop. Why are we even coming here?"

"Ahaha! What can I say, I'm a practical man, brother! Hearing you talk about this got me hyped to see the real thing," Anaido chuckled, swaying slightly as the bus stopped and stepping onto the street as the doors slid open, turning around with a wry grin and holding out his hand, as if inviting Sakaido to follow him. "Besides, you could have easily said no... partner..."

Sakaido huffed dryly, playing coy and looking away for a moment, unable to keep up the act for any longer though, breaking into a smile as he stepped off the bus and into the night. A few seconds later, the bus closed its doors and drove off out further towards the countryside, as it moved revaling a fork of the road branching off toward a nearby hill, winding around it towards the summit. 

"Ayako was coming home early as well," Sakaido sighed, crossing the empty road towards the hill, Anaido by his side. "I swear, you owe me for this."

"What?! Are you saying our time together isn't enough of a reward on its own?"

"Bite me."

"Ooo, Sakaido, I didn't know you-"

"God, you really need to get a date."

"Hey! Don't turn this around on me!"


	15. Leviticus; or, The Anatomy of Hill House

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Subtitle comes from the book "The Haunting of Hill House" and the game "Anatomy".

"GEHA!" Anaido yelled, windmilling his arms as he stepped into a pile of mud, his foot skidding across the ground and nearly toppling over. After a few moments, he managed to regain his sense of balance, planting his feet firmly back down as he exhaled. 

"Careful!" Sakaido cautioned, turning around and looking back down at Anaido, still several meters further up the hill than the latter. "Getting a twisted ankle or a broken neck here would be the worst-case scenario, especially if someone caught us."

Giving a cheeky grin, Anaido resumed walking, albeit with slightly more caution than before. "Glad to know your priorities are in check." Rolling his eyes, Sakaido turned back and kept walking. "Have to say though, wasn't expecting you to be so paranoid. You said that nobody's gonna be watching, but you're also making us take the back door."

"I said nobody's _probably_ going to be watching," Sakaido corrected, ducking under a low tree branch. "Besides, the road wraps around the hill. It would take us twice as long if we actually followed it." Shrugging in response, Anaido snapped the branch off and tossed it behind him. The two kept walking in silence, Sakaido looking forward with a somewhat tense expression, Anaido right behind him, his eyes darting from branch to branch, struggling to count the leaves in the darkness. Realising what he was doing, he harshly pinched his cheek, before looking up at Sakaido.

"Hey, what time is it?"

"Time to get a watch."

"Ahahaha! Not funny."

"It's ten to ten, but on a serious note, what happened to your wristwatch?" Sakaido asked, glancing over his shoulder, though he didn't slow his pace at all. "When we first met, I remember you wearing one, but since then I haven't seen it once?"

"Observant, aren't we, Mr. Detective?" Anaido quipped with a grin. "Don't think too hard about it, the strap broke, is all. Haven't gotten around to getting a new one yet."

"It's been months, man. I've noticed you using the sun to tell the time, but that's far from the best method. Is there a-?"

"I'm telling you, brother, I'm fine. If you're that obsessed with it, why not get a watch for me?"

Sakaido stopped abruptly and turned around, staring straight into Anaido's eyes. "Alright. I will. When we get back." Anaido met his stare head-on, giving a small smirk.

"Sure. I'm not about to pass up free stuff."

The two men looked at each other, each waiting for the other to slip up in some way. Finally, Sakaido narrowed his eyes, turned back around and kept walking. Anaido watched him for a moment, shaking his head and chewing his lip, before following. They didn't speak the remainder of the way up.

* * *

"Here we are."

Sakaido came to a peak. Stopping briefly and looking at whatever was in front of him, he pushed on, jogging down the small hill. Undoing a button on his shirt, Anaido blew down onto his chest as he stepped up, letting out a mildly impressed whistle.

The Hayaseura estate was a massive mansion, almost the size of the park a mile or so from his shop. Built in a Western-style, the building was around five or six stories tall, resembling the European palaces it was clearly designed to homage. However, Anaido highly doubted that any of those real palaces would be allowed to fall into such a state of disrepair as this one had been. Having once been a bright white, much of the paint had long since peeled so that most of the structure was now mostly a bricky brown.

"Well... isn't this tacky," Anaido sneered, wiping the sweat from his brow as he and Sakaido descended the hill towards the rotting wooden doors, which lead to a large rectangle that jutted awkwardly out of the front of the house.

"In its prime, it really was a beautiful building, though it has undergone a few major renovations over the years," Sakaido explained, taking his chilly hands out of his pockets to rub some warmth back into them. "The whole thing was knocked down and remade in this style about two hundred years ago." Anaido spat at a nearby blade of grass in response.

"Ehh, from a visual standpoint, I guess it's okay. But for people to actually live in this old dumps... nothing but celebrities too invested in playing the part, if you ask me."

"Hey, come on. These things can be interesting. You know, Hijiriido's big into these kinds of things. Her Instagram is full of pictures of old churches and castles."

"Hmph. I suppose from an aesthetic perspective, it's kinda cool..." Grumbling, Anaido shoved his hands in his pockets. "Maybe I'd appreciate this place more if it wasn't such a corpse. I doubt even Hijiriido would be happy to see it in this state."

Letting out a sigh, Sakaido looked up at the mansion, all its faults and imperfections spotlighted by the clear moonlight. "Well, can't say you don't have a point there." After a few more moments, the pair found themselves in front of the large wooden doors, which were about a meter or so taller than Anaido. What at one point must have been an imposing, rich brown work of art, was now moist, covered in a thin layer of grime and turning a distinct grey. 

"Hmph, this place needs a rabbi..." Anaido muttered, giving himself a slight nod as he sniffed at the grimy mould, noticing the confused look Sakaido gave him. "Aha, don't worry, it's a bible reference."

"I swear, you've read everything..." Shaking his head in amusement, Sakaido hesitantly pushed the door, ignoring the feeling of the grime against his fingertips. Unlocked, his side of the door swung open with a quick and a groan, almost as if it was about to fall off the hinges. With a quick glance at Anaido, Sakaido walked into the foyer, his gangly partner following him. "Well. Here we are."

Anaido let out an undefinable noise as he stood next to Sakaido, taking in his environment. The foyer was dead. Dead and decaying; its body infested with scurrying rats and parasitic bugs. Larger a professional tennis court, much of the space was empty, the only objects of note being the rusty metal frames of tables pushed to the side, the white cloths covering them having long since rotted away, and the chandelier, which lay in a heap. Where it had once hung was now a large, gaping hole that reached from the centre of the room towards the left side, letting in the rays of moonlight to illuminate. The odd metal plate lay on the floor, virtually indistinguishable from the mouldy carpet beneath, which might have been red at some point, but just as plausibly could have been brown. At the far end of the hall were two staircases, each starting on one side of an empty statue base surrounded by rubble and curving upwards towards an open door. Rubbing his nose, Anaido looked at the pillars pressed against the walls. In each of them, about a meter above ground, was a uniform, rectangular hole cut into the concrete. 

_"No live organism can continue for long to exist sanely under conditions of absolute reality; even larks and katydids are supposed, by some, to dream. Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within; it had stood for eighty years and might stand for eighty more."_

"Is that from a book?" Sakaido asked as Anaido walked off to the right towards the nearest hole.

"Yeah, _The Haunting of Hill House_. Shirley Jackson, 1959. Just popped into my head." Squatting, Anaido looked at the shape, tracing its outline with his gaze. _"Within, walls continued upright, bricks met neatly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone."_ As Anaido spoke, Sakaido began wandering down the foyer towards the statue base, a morbid nostalgia engulfing him. He could feel the house, its hands reaching out to him, praying on the unresolved feeling of curiosity in his mind. It was hard to admit it, but in this ailing, diseased building... he felt comfortable. He inhaled deeply.

"After all this time, the smell is finally gone."

"I thought they would have defumed the place by the time you-"

"Not that smell."

"... **oh**."

His eyes slightly lidded, Sakaido stopped right in front of the crashed chandelier. "I remember when this fell down. I was further ahead in the corridor when I heard the roof crumble, followed by a crash and screaming. Damn near killed someone; she tried to sue. Last I heard, they settled out of court. Don't know how much she got, but she ended up quitting immediately after."

Anaido whistled as he got up and walked over. "Who knew nearly dying was so lucrative? I should close the shop and just step into traffic." Frowning, Sakaido turned, a concerned look on his face.

"You know, you shouldn't joke about things like that," he said, only for Anaido to laugh at him, waving his hand around nonchalantly.

"Hahaha! Easy, brother! I was just teasing. Trust me, I'm not going through all that again!"

"Through all what again?" 

Anaido lowered his hand and ceased his laughter, shrugging dismissively with a coy smile as he kept walking past Sakaido. "... you know. Just the bookshelf thing. What did you think I was talking about?"

"Just... don't joke about that, alright?" Sakaido sighed, shaking his head to himself as he started moving as well, circling the chandelier and following Anaido.

"Alright, but I still don't know what you're talking about." With one last humoured snigger, Anaido scratched at his neck casually, his eyes bulging for a split second as his fingers dipped bellow his collar and dug into his skin, before just as quickly retreating. "Speaking of paying people off, I don't see how those canisters were snuck in by one guy without anyone noticing. This whole thing reeks of corruption."

"Yeah, no doubt," Sakaido agreed, stepping over a tray that was in the process of merging with the carpet. "The only question is who paid who to do it."

"Well, we know _one_ of those people was Uraido!" Anaido said, turning towards Sakaido with a grin, who rolled his eyes.

"We've been through this, Anaido. You can't just toss out accusations like that without any proof." As they reached the stairs, the two subconsciously separated, Sakaido going up the left as he continued to talk, and Anaido on the right listening and watching. "Uraido is most likely a petty asshole who ignored my suggestions and blacklisted me from cases out of spite."

"You used the term, 'most likely', implying that you think there's a chance he _is_ involved, right?" Anaido asked, reaching the top of the stairs a few seconds before Sakaido.

"Never have I met someone so simultaneously brilliant and moronic," Sakaido said, climbing the last stair and meeting Anaido at the small balcony overlooking the entire foyer.

"Ahaaaaa, isn't that the usual combination?" Anaido quirked his eyebrow with a wink. Hand on his hip, Sakado looked out towards the door.

"You can't just chase theories because they suit your beliefs or biases. It would be hypocritical of me to think Niseido isn't responsible because of a lack of real motive, only to then accuse Uraido when he also has no real motive."

"So what you're saying is you DO think he did it, you just can't find any proof! Got it."

"No, that's not what I-!"

"Is someone there?"

"Shit!" Without thinking, Sakaido reached up, grabbed Anaido by the collar and pulled him down with him behind the balcony, which was thankfully completely solid with no holes or gaps. A few seconds later, a flash of light danced above their heads, washing over the wall and the door. The two men glanced at each other, both realising how serious the situation had now become. Looking at Anaido, Sakaido held a finger against his own lips for before turning around and crawling over towards the stairs. By now, the light had moved towards Anaido's side of the room, and Sakaido cautiously peeked around the edge of the balcony. There, walking down the foyer, was a lone man in an officer's uniform, sweeping a flashlight across the pillars.

"Hello? I know I heard someone!"

Closing his eyes, Sakaido took in a silent breath to compose himself as he retreated back behind the balcony. Promptly opening them again, he turned towards Anaido with an open mouth, only to realise what he was staring at empty space. "Ana-?"

A sudden, rusty creek cut through the air, drawing Sakaido's attention to the wall. There, still crouching, was Anaido, who had pulled the door to the main building open. Realising his error immediately, he turned towards Sakaido with a horrified expression, one that only grew grimmer as the flashlight hit the top of the door, just barely scratching the ends of his hair.

"Who's there?!" the officer demanded, the tell-tale sounds of sprinting following after. His eyes wide, Sakaido looked at Anaido, who was already halfway through the doorway, and mouthed a single word at him.

_**RUN** _


	16. Leviticus II; or, It's Probably Nothing

"Ha... gah... I really need to... get that gym membership... or wait, did I already-?"

"Shut up...!" Sakaido hushed, reaching up and covering Anaido's nose with his hand, before quickly realising his mistake and lowering it to his mouth. "I can hear him coming!" Going silent, Anaido strained his ears, sweat dripping down the side of his face as he heard footsteps creeping down the hallway. In the near-total darkness, he could just barely make out Sakaido's bright pink hair shifting about as Sakaido turned his head back and forth, only to suddenly freeze up as the door opened. Through the gap in the wardrobe, the two could see the light from the officer's torch bouncing around as he scanned the room, the lack of footsteps implying he hadn't moved from the table. 

"Tch... fuck." Cursing under his breath, the policeman stepped back into the hallway and shut the door, once again plunging the room into darkness. "Yeah, thought I heard them. Sorry, Sir. I'll keep looking." The two kept still as the officer's footsteps slowly faded as he moved down the hall. Keeping his breath quiet, Sakaido let go of Anaido's mouth and slowly pushed the wardrobe door open, stifling a cough as he brushed the dust out of his hair. 

"Shit... it was stupid to come here..."

"Come on. You could have said no at any time, Sakaido," Anaido said, flopping his upper body about as dush flew off him. Rolling his eyes, Sakaido turned back and glared at him. 

"Don't you start right now, alright!? We need to get out of here and head back to the shop without being spotted." Hand to his face, he walked towards the door, his volume dropping as he grabbed the handle. "Hopefully he's the only one here. Let's head back the way we came and-"

"Are you _sure_ we can bank on that?" Anaido interrupted, tapping Sakaido on the head with a weary grin. "Aren't you the one who said that we wouldn't run into anyone?"

"I said we _probably_ won't run into anyone!"

"Like we _probably_ won't run into anyone else?"

Giving up on trying to refute his point, Sakaido's hand dropped from the door handle and let out a dry sigh, frowning at the fact that he couldn't correct Anaido, who chuckled at his downbeat demeanour. "Don't think too much, brother!" he reassured, pushing Sakaido away lightly and opening the door himself, peeking his head into the corridor cautiously, before opening it further and stepping into the hall. "Come on, you know this place, right? Any secret passages or something? These old-style houses are full of them. At least in the novels!" Rolling his eyes, Sakaido hid his smile as he followed.

"You shouldn't count on novels, they're often nothing like real cases, even if they are entertaining," he said, leading the way in the opposite direction that the officer had gone in. "Having said that, there is a bit of truth in myth. The Hayaseura Manor has one further ahead that leads back into the forest."

"Hmph. A shame that none of the guests could use it," Anaido mused, eyebrows raised as he looked around the corridor they were walking through. What had most likely at one point been filled with side tables, expensive, tacky vases and rare, probably fake paintings was now completely barren, only slight imprints in the dust ever suggesting something was there. Wincing at the peeling, aged wallpaper, Anaido then deliberately scuffed his foot on the floor, kicking up a cloud of dust particles, thankfully far too small for even him to count. 

_Coming here was a blessing and a curse. There's no way that I'll be able to sleep soundly after tonight. I get why Sakaido's been thinking about it all this time._

"You know, we should bring Hijiriido with us next time," he said, almost absentmindedly. 

"Uhh, why?" Sakaido asked, slowing his pace slightly as he looked back. Anaido shrugged and smiled.

"Come on, something like this is right up her al-ugh?!" Suddenly Sakaido reached out and yanked him by the collar, quickly shushing him with a panicked look and pulling him forward as silently as possible. Learching forward, Anaido craned his neck backwards. Far at the back of the corridor, around the bend leading into another was the harsh beam of a torch, bouncing up and down slightly as the owner drew closer. His smile replaced with an anxious grimace, Anaido looked back to say something to Sakaido, only for him to nearly choke as he was pulled around the corner.

"Argk...!" Trying to keep his coughs at a low volume, Anaido shook Sakaido's hand off and kept pace with him. "So, what's the plan?"

"Same plan, just much faster," Sakaido replied, his face fairly tense, but otherwise overall levelheaded and calm, having at some point shifted into a laser-focused mindset. Anaido looked back, grimacing when he noticed the light from the torch starting to make itself known and making sure to make his footsteps faster yet quieter. Looking back every once in awhile, he followed Sakaido, who led him down long halls and tight corners for about a minute before suddenly coming to a stop, grabbing Anaido by his collar when he walked straight past. 

"This is it." Rotating his foot, Sakaido turned to the right-hand wall and, after scanning it for a moment, kicked at a seemingly innocuous portion of the skirting board. The tip of his foot disappeared into the wall with a mechanical click, followed by a noticeably louder one in the wall itself. Placing his hand on it, Sakaido push forward forcefully, causing a large section to move backwards deeper into the building. "HMMP! Crap, come on, help!" he ordered, gritting his teeth and pushing with both hands. Looking back the way they came, Anaido obediently did the same and pushed, though he doubted it made much difference.

"God...! Why is this house built from stone?! What's wrong with wood and paper...?!" Anaido grunted as the wall moved further and further into the building, looking over in confusion when Sakaido stopped all of a sudden. "Huh? What's wrong with...? Oh." Wiping his sweat, Sakaido stepped into the newly revealed corridor; a dark, tight space that screamed claustrophobic. 

"You really think a paper tunnel would have held up this long?" Sakaido ask rhetorically, turning on his phone torch and venturing deeper into the tunnel. "Frankly, I was worried that even this might not have lasted." Not wanting to lose sight of him, Anaido followed, his forehead smashing into the rim of the ceiling and forcing him to walk with a stoop. 

"Uh, shouldn't we close that wall up?"

"Don't bother, it would take us too long. Just keep pace and you'll be fine."

"Athletics never was my strong suit," Anaido admitted, the top of his head catching cobwebs as they descended the filthy, velvet-clad steps. "Not that I couldn't run when I needed to, but uh, I always felt I had to reach a certain-"

"Hey! Is anyone down there?"

"And that's our cue to start sprinting," Sakaido said, keeping his phone steady as he began bounding down the stairs. Taking a deep breath, Anaido followed suit, nearly crashing into walls at any particularly sharp turns and coming close to tripping several times. Thankfully, this only lasted a few more seconds before Sakaido suddenly started sprinting down the stairs towards what seemed like a dead end. With a grunt, he rammed into it with his shoulder, the entire wall tearing away from the wall with little resistance, both it and Sakaido crashing out into the outside. The moon was still high in the sky, meaning there was plenty of light as Anaido stumbled out and helped Sakaido back to his feet. 

"Should we go back to the front?"

"No, if there _are_ others, then they'll probably be there. We'll have to go the long way!" Back up, Sakaido bolted into the woods. Anaido groaned but didn't complain as he followed, trying his best to keep up. Asides from their pants and gasps, the two made no attempt at conversation, running as fast as they could, carefully not to let their downhill trajectory trip them up or have them crash into a tree uncontrollably. Anaido in particular found himself coming to a halt multiple times to stop from running right into branches and tree trunks. Sakaido on the other hand, dodged artfully around any and all obstacles, the worst moment coming when his scarf snagged on a branch, sliding right off his neck. Jerking his head back, he skidded to a halt and was about to back, only for Anaido to snatch it off with a thumbs up and a hyped-up grin as he crashed past. Giving a grateful nod, Sakaido kept going, too anxious to look back any more, all his thoughts focused on the singular task of making it to the bottom of the hill ASAP, completely ignoring Anaido's mad giggles as he slowly started to fall behind again.

Thankfully, it was only moments later that the ground suddenly levelled out and they hit the road, illuminated by a stark lamp post. Sticking out his left arm, Sakaido made a sharp turn in that direction, followed by Anaido, who had wrapped the long flowing scarf around his own neck. Without a downwards slope or trees and roots to worry about, the two sprinted down the side of the road, burning the last of their energy and hitting the main road after a few minutes. Exhausted, they managed to keep up a decent pace as they waded into the city outskirts. Only then did Sakaido work up the courage to look back behind him towards the hill. Nothing.

"Fu..... finally..." Sakaido wheezed as a bus stop finally came into view, allowing himself to drop to a brisk job. Anaido however, still hopped up on adrenaline apparently, sped right past him, Sakaido's scarf flapping behind him as he cackled like a demon, only stopping after slamming into the bus sign. Twirling around like a limp ballerina, he turned towards Sakaido, a dazed smile on his face, countered by Sakaido's drained, weary expression as he approached. "What's up with you? Having a manic episode?"

"Ahahahaha! Come on! Don't tell me that wasn't fun!"

"I'd prefer the word 'scary', thank you," Sakaido snarked as Anaido laughed at him, though already he was looking much more tired, his energy clearly starting to crash. "Come on, calm down. Haven't seen you get this worked up before. Don't tell me that owning a bookshop is that boring?"

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Anaido said, one-upping Sakaido's sarcasm as he leant against the sign, giving the timetable an incidental glance, only to rip his gaze away a moment later back to Sakaido, who had just reached him. "You must have done stuff like this back in the day!"

"I mean, I was always on the one chasing people, so it's a bit frightening being on the other side," Sakaido admitted, grabbing ahold of his scarf and pulling it from Anaido's neck. "But I suppose the scenario itself is familiar."

"Whoa, so... ugh, cool..." Anaido said, his words interrupted by a yawn he barely tried to stifle, his eyelids beginning to drop. Sakaido sighed, rolling his eyes with a small smile.

"You know, you really remind me of a kid sometimes."

"A kid who you owe rent to!"

"Yeah yeah." Holding up his hands, Sakaido chuckled, turning and looking back up the road, letting out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding when he saw a bus appear around the bend. "So, I hope you enjoyed that field trip of ours. I'm never coming back here, that's for sure."

"Ooooooh yeah, I loved it..." Anaido drawled, laughing darkly to himself, leaning heavily on the post. "Ah... I need to get out more often... but... but you know... we do need to think about how that guard ended up there." Sakaido looked away, his brow furrowing as the bus pulled up.

"We probably just got unlucky, don't think about it too much," he said, stepping on as the doors opened and pulling out his card.

"Hypocrite..." Anaido teased, following him in, fumbling about in his pockets before yanking out his wallet, winking at the dead-eyed bus driver, who barely gave him a glance before shutting the door and starting up the vehicle again. Stumbling slightly, he crashed next Sakaido, who'd plonked himself in the nearest seat. "You know... I have been thinking about something you said... a little while ago." Sakaido, who'd been staring out the window, turned towards him.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Remember back when you told me about this whole Hayaseura business? When the building got fumed? You said 'damn-near every single member of the family' was there, right?"

Sakaido exhaled hard through his nose, shaking his head and chuckling at himself. "I should have known you'd hang on to that one." Anaido gave a teasing, wry smile.

"Now THAT'S the smartest thing I've ever heard you say..."

"Alright, alright." Sighing, Sakaido returned to staring out the window, or rather, at his own reflection. "It's pretty late, and you look wrecked, so let's get home and in bed before anything else. But tomorrow, if you want, I'll bring you up to speed with my own personal investigation." Anaido deflated somewhat.

"Aww come one! You can't leave me with just that!"

"Okay okay, I'll let you in on my lead.

"Your lead, huh?"

"Yeah. A little something called... Kaeru."


	17. Pillar; or, Collapse

Anaido knew it would be an awful day the moment he opened his eyes and felt a dull, familiar throb in the left side of his head. With a dry, throaty groan, he threw an arm over his eyes. He hadn't had a natural migraine since leaving the hospital, and he'd almost started hoping that as long as he caught himself before he went off the deep end, he'd be safe.

_Of course not though. Of fucking course not._

Taking a deep breath, Anaido extended his arm and groped blindly for the hitherto-unopened bottle of Triptans on his desk. After a few moments, he gripped the lip of the plastic bottle and lifted it up, only to drop it immediately when his phone rang. "Fuuuuu...." Reluctantly moving his hand up and opening his eyes up again, he grabbed the phone and answered without even looking at the caller. "Hello...?"

_"Hey, Early Bird! Knew you'd be up!"_

His surprise jolting him awake slightly, Anaido forced himself to sit up. "Oh. Hey, Kirin."

_"I told you, Kenzo, it's alright to call me Ayako!"_

"Ahaha! And what would your boyfriend say if I started calling you by your first name before him?"

_"Well, maybe you should start using his first name then! I don't think Naru would mind, you two are already so close."_

"Careful there. I might steal him from right under your nose..." Anaido said with a teasing grin, which grew slightly larger at the sound of Ayako's laugh.

_"Ahaha, I see you trying to change the topic!"_

"So are you saying that you called me at-" Anaido pulled his phone away from his ear to look at the time in the top left corner, immediately looking away and saying the words without really thinking about it. "-ten to seven?"

_"Fine fine, I'll get to it! I wanna talk about you and Naruhito's 'bar crawl' last night."_

Anaido glanced over at the various clothes scattered all over the floor, vague images of drinking shower water before stumbling into bed coming to mind. "Uh, wouldn't call it a bar crawl, but yeah, what about it?" he asked, cracking his back and getting out of bed, stretching his joints as he walked over to his dresser.

_"Well, whatever it was, Sakaido came home not looking the least bit drunk, and trust me, that man can't hold his drink for the life of him."_

"Ah. Ah uh."

_"Also, did you two have to pass through an ally and trip on the way back home? Because he was absolutely filthy. And sweaty too! Why did you go there again...?"_

"Uuuuhhhh... yeah. Someone stole my wallet, so we had a bit of an old-fashioned chase sequence. I need to work out more often. Ahaha!" Anaido said, slipping on a pair of boxers, his phone pressed between his ear and shoulder.

_"Ooooo, that's interesting. Because I just made that entire thing up!"_

Anaido's eye twitched as he let out a high-pitched snort. He stayed motionless for a moment, one leg halfway into his trousers as he regretted his being born, before eventually sighing and shoving the rest in. "I walked right into that one, huh?"

 _"Mmmhmm, that you did!"_ He could hear the smile on Ayako's face through her voice. Unable to stop one of his own forming, he hopped and put his other leg in. _"Naruhito's asleep right now, so now's the time to tell me all about what you two got up to last night."_

"Oh? Planning on dropping that you know later on?"

_"Yep! I'm thinking sometime next week. By then he'll think he's gotten away with it!"_

Sniggering, Anaido opened his wardrobe, pulling out a wrinkled white shirt. "Don't worry, we didn't get up to much. Just uh, you know."

_"You're not good at improvisation, are you, Kenzo?"_

"Nope." There was a sigh on the other end of the line, followed by silence. Anaido paused doing up his buttons, waiting for her to respond.

_"Just... promise that you'll stop him from getting too reckless, okay?"_

"Ha, him? I've always gotten the impression that he was the one who was babysitting me!"

_"I know, but... sometimes he gets so caught up in his work that he gets this tunnel vision. It's hard not to admire his dedication, but... just make sure to bring him back down to Earth every once in awhile, alright? Even he messes up sometimes, and he can be pretty hard on himself when he does._

Anaido, now fully dressed, sighed through clenched teeth, scratching his neck before nodding, eyes closed with a tight smile. "Yeah, yeah I get it. I'm no pillar, but I'll do my best, I guess." Ayako gave a smile giggle, making his smile a little bit more natural.

 _"Thank you, Kenzo, for everything! Oh, looks like he's waking up!"_ she said, her voice dropping to a whisper. _"Gotta go, bye!"_

"Ahaha, byyyyyyyyeeeee...." Anaido waved at nobody as Ayako hung up. Giving himself a tired laugh, he shoved his phone back in his pocket and, after a few stretches, left the room with a lazy saunter, completely unaware of the fact that he'd forgotten his socks and shoes.

* * *

_"Hey, this is Miyo Hijiriido. I'm not available right now. Uh, available as in I-!"_

With a sigh, Anaido hung up, flopping his phone on the desk and kicking his bare feet up, flexing his toes. "Third time's the charm my ass..." Settling back into silence, he turned his head towards Sakaido's door instinctively, now able to hear him talking on the phone through it. Through the whispers he was able to pick up, he seemed to be discussing rates with someone, probably a prospective customer, meaning he probably wouldn't appreciate being bugged at that moment. With nothing much else to do and less than ten minutes before his lunch, Anaido picked up his phone again and starting scrolling through the headlines almost absentmindedly, not really paying attention to anything he was reading.

_Don't be a creep, she's probably in class or something, that's why she couldn't answer. Probably turned her phone cause you were being so damn annoying, you-_

Anaido's thoughts instantly ground to a halt as he scrolled past a picture of Uraido. Physically flinching, he slid his feet off the desk and sat up straight, frantically scrolling back up to find the picture, which he did, along with the accompanying headline.

_**Local Police Chief promoted to Senior Commissioner** _

Anaido stared at the words for a few moments, unsure as to what to feel, before tapping on them, and arriving at the full article.

_In a stunning move, Chief Hirohito Uraido has been formally named as Senior Commissioner Nishio Shirakoma's successor. Speaking at a press conference earlier today, Shirakoma (who is due to retire in a week) endorsed his replacement and former partner, saying:_

_"Having worked with Hirohito for many years, there are perhaps few others who understand his worth as an officer as much as I do. Without even counting his incredible service to the force over the years that everyone is familiar with, his fantastic sense of duty and admirable intellect almost make him too good for the position of Senior Commissioner."_

_Chief Uraido had been considered the frontrunner for many in the bid to replace Shirakoma, citing the pedigree his name still holds, as well as his prior relationship to Shirakoma, however just as many also dismissed him, believing that his relatively low ranking prevent him from even being eligible. This as reignited discussions surrounding the renowned detectives rank, as it as often been reported in the past that he was previously passed over for usual promotions in favour of his partner, though such rumours have never been confirmed, and, if true at all, seem to have been reversed. At the same conference, Uraido followed Shirakoma's statement with one of his own:_

_"As I reach the twilight of my life, it seems that I have given all I can when it comes to active fieldwork. The recent arrest of the mastermind behind the Hayaseura Massacre is the perfect finale, and I accept that I am finally ready to transition into a more administrative role, leaving my old duties in the hand of the younger generation."_

_Uraido's promotion comes as the police force faces a growing number of resignations, driven by what some believe to be an increasing level of corruption and-_

Anaido stopped reading at that point, pulling a perplexed face and turning off his phone. Looking around aimlessly, he eventually settled on gazing at the ceiling, his brow slightly furrowed. "Hmmm." Something clicked in his head, and he looked over at the door to Sakaido's office. He couldn't hear any chatter, meaning the conversation had probably ended. Instead, there was the sound of frantic pacing back and forth. "Someone's thinking again," Anaido chuckled, getting to his feet, about to walk over when suddenly Sakaido's footsteps changed direction, opening the door himself a few seconds later with a smug, self-satisfied grin.

"Anaido, buddy! You doing good?" Somewhat caught off guard, Anaido immediately sat down again.

"Uh, yeah...? Was just about to go talk, I guess. What's up?"

"Was just on the phone to an old friend of mine from the force," Sakaido said, crossing his arms and leaning against the frame. "He said that he and a couple of other guys decided to follow my lead and quit to start their own detective agency. They were just on the phone right now, asking how to set their hourly rates."

"Huh... bet you're feeling slick. What made them jump ship?"

"The resolution to the Hayaserua Case. It wasn't just us who smelt the crap when it came to Niseido's confession. That, followed by his promotion a few weeks afterwards, has made a few people think that he wanted to sneak in one last win before he became SC."

"Whoa, you guys heard? I was just going to tell you," Anaido said, eyebrows raised as he kicked his feet up again. Sakaido blanched slightly at his bare feet, but didn't let it impede his enthusiasm. 

"Yeah, I caught the news this morning, but the others apparently heard a few days ago when Uraido told them when they went out drinking."

Hmph, our man isn't subtle at all," Anaido shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck with a closed smile. Sakaido frowned at the motion.

"What's wrong? You seem a bit put off." Anaido's smile grew wider but remained just as tight.

"All this, it just seems a bit convenient. I mean, from what I can tell, this guy must have the influence and the power to do things more-" 

"Anaido, I've said this already," Sakaido sighed, holding up his hand and pinching the bridge of his nose with the other. "It doesn't matter if the guy is a bit of a dick, you can't just don a tin-foil hat and-"

"Why are you defending him, Sakaido?" Anaido interrupted, his gaze oddly piercing as he locked eyes with Sakaido, the other man nearly flinching in surprise.

"I... What are you talking about?"

"You never go the full mile and outright accuse him of all the stupid shit he's clearly been doing. Why? Think about it, all this weird stuff around the Haya-"

"I know! I know," Sakaido shouted, before reigning in his anger almost immediately. "Ugh, listen. I get that there's a lot of unusual things about the Hayaseura Case, but we can't just toss around conspiracy theories. I told you this back in the house. He has no motive." Anaido held up his hands and gave a lopsided, toothy grin, which was at least less unsettling that his prior smile. Still, Sakaido could still feel the tension remaining, and acted quickly to snuff it out. "Ya know what? I know there's a lot of odd things about this case, but I think I know something that might help clear things up." Anaido smirked, knowing exactly what he was talking about.

"Kaeru, right? You did promise me you'd tell me about her."

"Exactly. She's related to another case that I'd been investigating for about a year after it was closed, until I was forced to stop just before I quit."

"Hahaha! Fine, I'll let you distract me," Anaido chuckled, leaning on the desk with a wry smirk. "Come on, it's not polite to leave people on cliffhangers."

"Yeah yeah. First of all though, have you ever heard of the name 'Asukai'?" Sakaido asked, leaning forward slightly. Anaido opened his mouth to reply, only for the sound of the shop door slamming open. On instinct, Anaido turned away from Sakaido and stood up, a lazy smile plastered over his face.

"Hey there! How can I... uh... Hijiriido?"

"Guh...! Hey... missed me...?" Gasping for air, Hijiriido took off her hat and flapped it desperately in her face as she exhaustedly sauntered in, letting the door close behind her. "I swear, this weather... might have to shower when I get back..."

"Uh, hey, how's things been?" asked Sakaido, eyebrows raised as Hijriido suddenly perked up, as if suddenly remembering something.

"Oh! Yeah! That's what I came here for! Guys, I have something great to tell you!" she said, her energy rising again as she approached them. Glancing at each other, Sakaido leaned back and Anaido sat down, kicking his feet back up as they waited in anticipation. Hijiriido waited for a moment, shuffling back and forth slightly as she paused, seemingly for dramatic effect, before suddenly opening her arms.

"I dropped out!"

"..."

"..."

"Hey, Anaido, why aren't you wearing shoes?"

"... why didn't I take the pills...?"


	18. Idiots; or, Collapse II

"... why didn't I take the pills...?"

"I... wait, you did what?!" Sakaido spluttered, ignoring Anaido, who'd lowered his feet and placed his elbows on the desk, aggressively rubbing his temples as he muttered to himself with his eyes closed. Slightly spooked by the reaction, Hijiriido nonetheless crossed the distance between them with a confident smile.

"I dropped out!"

"Y-Yeah, but... why?!"

"I've been thinking for a little bit, and I decided that this whole university thing just isn't for me," Hijiriido said as she shrugged, announcing this decision with a mundane, almost cocky tone, as if she was saying she'd decided to have orange juice with her breakfast this morning. Still caught off guard, Sakaido struggled to find words, eventually managing to spit something out.

“You…? okay… so what’s… what are you… _doing_ then?” he asked. Clearly having been waiting for someone to ask this question, Hijiriido bared her teeth in an open smile and placed her hands on her hips, priming herself to deliver what seemed like a weight statement. One of his eyebrows nearly touching his hairline, Sakaido leaned on the desk, a sense of dreadful anticipation rising. Even Anaido seemed to sense this, lifting his head slightly and cracking open an eye, his muttering ceasing as Hijiriido inhaled deep through her nostrils.

“Mr. Sakaido! I’d like to join you as your partner in deduction!” she said, extending her hand out as if expecting a handshake. Instead, Anaido let out a high pitched, somewhat stifled snort as his head slipped out of his hands and hit the desk, his shoulders shaking in silent laughter. Sakaido seemed to deflate, letting out a shallow sigh as he took a few steps forward.

“Hijiriido… don’t you think you should have asked me about that _before_ you left?”

“Come on! Give me some credit! I bet you’re worried about paying me, right?”

“W-Well, that’s part of it, but-!”

“Don’t even worry about it, just think of me as an unpaid intern for now! My parent’s give me a ton of allowance each month, so I can just rent a place for awhile until we get back on our feet! I’m sure I can find a small little flat around her somewhere. Oh, maybe I can-!”

“OKAY! Stop!” Sakaido clapped his hands, the harsh sound cutting Hijiriido off. Closing his eyes briefly and taking a deep breath, he shook his head and frowned at Hijiriido. “Right. You’re going to calm down, think about things for once, and answer my questions. Right?” Hijiriido blinked, but still looked fairly self-assured as she nodded. Some semblance of calm beginning to return, Sakaido remembered that they were in a shop, and turned towards Anaido, semi-apologetically. “Sorry, man, we’re still in business hours, uh… hey, you alright?”

“Mmmhmmmm…! Juuuuust dandy….” Sucking in air hard, Anaido leaned back in his chair, rapping his fingers against the desk at a lightning pace. “Three… twenty-seven… nineteen thousand, six hundred and eighty-three… I’m good.” Lightly slapping his palms on the desk, he stood up, the chair squeaking against the floor as he did so. Without so much as a glance at the others, he walked straight past them and towards the door. “I don’t think I’ll get much ‘work’ done today anyway,” he said, flipping the sign around to ‘Closed’ and turning around, leaning against the door with his arms crossed, a thin, rather unpleasant smile on his lips. “I can go without a couple of patrons for a day…”

“Uh, I really think you guys are making this a much bigger deal than it needs to be,” Hijiriido said, still trying to keep up a positive mood. Unfortunately, this only annoyed Sakaido further, who sighed and took up a similar pose to Anaido, though with a far sterner expression.

“What are your plans again? To just find and rent an apartment? _Here_? Me and Ayako put together just about make rent plus necessities, even less so now that my income’s more unreliable.”

“I told you, my parents! My all-”

“Are you seriously telling me that your parents can afford to pay for an apartment purely through your _allowance_? How do they even feel about it?!” The latter question seemed to prick Hijiriido’s nerves, her brow furrowing with an accompanying grimace before relaxing into a more apathetic expression, looking away in disinterest.

“Hmph, as long as I don’t come home, Mother won’t care. Means she doesn’t have to think about me more than once a month. And Dad… he… well, he probably won’t even know until he gets back anyway. Probably doesn’t even know that I’ve started university yet.” This was hilarious or, at least Anaido thought so, as he started laughing immediately after Hijiriido finished her sentence, drawing attention back to him.

“Ahahaha! Sounds like quite the home life, Little Miss! Though I’m not sure what that has to do with our little predicament here.” Pushing himself off the door, he took a few steps closer, his grin a little toothier as he looked down on Hijirido with an eyebrow raised. “What’s really got me perplexed here is what started this whole conversation: you leaving university. Why?” Unnerved by his tone, Hijiriido attempted to give a reason.

“I told you, I’ve just been thinking over the past few days, and-”

“Yeah, I’m not buying that,” Anaido said bluntly, waving his finger back and forth with three disapproving ‘tuts’. “Just the day before last, you were here at my place, practically drooling over my collection, looking for references. That doesn’t sound like someone thinking about dropping out. I’m betting something happened to make you do a 180.” Anaido’s eyes suddenly glazed over for a moment, his expression becoming slightly duller before refocusing. “Something within the last… day? Maybe around the time you said you’d pay us a visit, but then didn’t show?”

Very briefly, Hijiriido’s eyes darted towards Sakaido. The action was so quick that had Anaido blinked he would have easily missed it. Looking over at the man in question, he cocked his eyebrow, silently offering to let him take over. Admittedly impressed with Anaido’s performance, Sakaido instantly picked up from where he left off, not even giving Hijiriido a moment to defend herself.

“Hijiriido. Did something happen to make you want to quit? Did someone talk you into it?” Hijiriido’s mouth tensed as she rubbed the back of her neck, unable to look either of them in the face.

“I-I… aha, ummm…”

 _Jackpot._ _  
_ _Jackpot!_

“Who talked you into quitting? Tell us,” Sakaido asked, softening his expression a bit. Hijiriido, after some internal debate, forced herself to look at him, the shame evident in her expression, her cheeks burning up. 

“I… yesterday I talked to… well, he’s the one who talked to me, but… I… Uraido.”

The second that followed might as well have gone on forever. The faint noises coming from outside the shop may as well have not existed. Hijiriido let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding, gazing down at her shoes. Anaido’s eyebrows shot up his forehead, his shoulders dropping in surprise as he looked over at Sakaido, whose entire body seemed to have gone into a state of tension. His hands gripping his biceps with a vice-like hold, his soft expression hardened, his eyes narrowing as his lips pulled back in a barely-concealed grimace. As long as it seemed though, the second draw to a close, and Sakaido was the one who broke the silence.

“What?” Both Hijiridiido and Anaido felt chills at his tone, a cold, sharp, harsh manner of speaking that didn’t seem to suit him.

“He… He was outside when I left to go to the shop! Eventually we got to talking about, you know, you and being a freelance, and… and he thought that I didn’t need to go to university. He told me that I’d make a good detective anyway!”

“Uggggghhhh…. No….” Sighing, Sakaido covered his face and shook his head. Taking this as a sign of offence apparently, Hijiriido gritted her teeth and continued.

“He said the same about you too! That we were the future of detectives! I know he’s been an asshole to you before, but I really think he’s got your best interests at heart, at least now he does! He kept asking about you, and wishing you luck, and-!”

“He can’t. Be. Trusted!” Sakaido interrupted, jabbing his pointed hand forward to punctuate his words. “Uraido is the kind of bastard to say everything you want to hear in front of you, and when he gets what he wants backstabs you. No hesitation and no remorse!”

“He’s not wrong, the guys a dick,” Anaido chimed in, snapping his fingers with a malicious grin. “He visited a while back, absolute prick. Not to mention, he’s probably involved in the Hayaseura Ca-”

“Anaido, don’t you start!” Sakaido warned, but it was too late. Hijiriido looked between the two, her confusion obvious.

“The… Hayaseura Case? What does this have to do with anything?” Sakaido opened his mouth, only for Anaido to beat him to it.

“We think that our pal Uraido has something to do with the incident. Things are just way too suspicious, especially with what Sakaido told-”

“Anaido, I’ve TOLD you about this!” By now, Sakaido’s face was starting to get red. Trying to contain his frustration, he ran his hands through his hair, making it look even wilder. “Shit… I never should have taken you to the mansion.”

There was another moment of silence as Sakaido realised what he’d just said.

_…. shit._

“You took him to the Hayaseura mansion!? What!? When!?” Suddenly feeling weary, Sakaido closed his eyes and massaged his forehead as Hijiriido’s questioning fell into the background, Anaido looking back and forth between the two, trying to figure out if he’d done something wrong.

_Damn it… this day… how could it get any-_

There was a knock at the door. Standing up straighter, Anaido frowned and spun around. “I thought I flipped the… oh.” There were two policemen standing outside, the one in front peering into the shop at the trio. Hijiriido instantly stopped talking as Anaido looked back at Sakaido, his face ashen. Keeping his expression level, Sakaido gestured for him to go on. After a small gulp, Anaido slapped on a casual face and walked over to the door.

“Afternoon, Officers!” he greeted, all teeth and smiles.

“Sorry to interrupt, Sir,” the officer in front said, peering around Anaido at the other two. “Is this the workplace of Naurito Sakaido?” Before Anaido could respond, Sakaido stepped forward, gently pushing him out the way.

“Yeah, that’s me. Is something wrong?”

“We’d like to bring you in for questioning related to a trespassing incident last night. You were identified by an on-site officer at the old Hayaseura mansion and recognised by another officer when you were described to him. We’d like you to come back to the station for awhile.”

Sakaido paused for a moment, glancing at Anaido, who was staring right back at him, his brow sweaty and his eyes wide. Not breaking eye contact, Sakaido nodded. “Of course. You mind if I get my stuff?”

“That’s fine, just be quick about it if you could.”

With a grateful nod, Sakaido turned around and disappeared into his office without so much as a word to Hijiriido and Anaido. Scratching his face, Anaido looked back at the officers. “He was… at the Hayaseura place?”

“That’s what’s been reported, yes.”

“By… himself?”

“From what we can tell, yes.”

Anaido covered his mouth and shook his head, looking back at Hijiriido almost like he was expecting her to say something. She however, was occupied with her phone, swiping up and down with an unreadable expression. After a few seconds, she seemed to find the contact she was looking for, pressing the phone to her ear and waiting anxiously as Sakaido emerged, his jacket and scarf over his arm and his satchel over his shoulder, by all appearances calm and at ease. His chest icy cold, Anaido approached him.

“Hey, Na-”

“Hopefully we can get this cleared up and I’ll be back soon, Anaido,” Sakaido said, giving him a small smile. “We’ll talk about Chūō when I get back.”

_Ch...ūō…?_

Before Anaido could question him, Sakaido walked past, leaving him with a single wink as he stepped out the door and onto the street, where the officers led him to a police car parked down the street. As the door swung shut, Anaido covered his eyes with his hands, grinding his teeth together as he fell against the nearest wall, struggling to contain an outburst, air hissing as it whistled past his teeth.

“Shit, come on! Pick up!” Hijiriido shouted as she called her contact again, stomping her foot in frustration, the noise dragging Anaido out of his head. Lowering his hand, he watched as she continued to rage at herself, before eventually pushing himself upright and walking over. 

“Who are you calling?” he drawled, his tone dry and raspy.

“Uraido! He gave me his number so I could ask for advice if I needed, but it’s not-!” Before she could finish her sentence, Anaido pulled out his phone, unlocked it, and stuck it in her face.

“Here, try mine.” Hijiriio, without thinking too much, took it from him with a grateful nod and dialled in Uraido’s number manually. After pressing call, she pressed the phone to her ear and waited. To her surprise, it actually rang, and a few seconds later the call was answered.

“Hello, and who might this be?” came Uraido’s languid tone, just barely loud enough for Anaido to hear.

“Mr. Uraido! What’s going on? Mr. Sakaido was just taken in by the police, and they said another officer identified him! Was it you? What did he do? What’s this about the Ha-?”

“I’m sorry, but do I know you?” 

Hijiriido spluttered, completely flabbergasted. “Wha-What?! What do you mean? It’s Miyo Hijiriido, we talked just yesterday!”

“I’m sorry, Miss, but I don’t know anyone of that name~,” Uraido said in a sing-song sort of way. The smirk on his face was practically audible. Holding Anaido’s phone in an increasingly tight grip, Hijiriido finally snapped.

“You bastard! You’re the one who told me I should quit! I believed you, I-!”

“You must have the wrong number. Goodbye and good luck… Brilliant Detective Miyo.” The line went dead. Biting down on her lip hard, she suddenly shot both her arms up, as if she was about to spike both phones into the ground, only to fall her knees, breaking out into a series of sobs as she tried in vain to hold back her tears. Letting the phones fall out of her hands, she tried to wipe them from her face, only for a weight on her head to startle her. Looking up, she could make out through her blurry vision Anaido, who was sitting crossed-legged next to her, rubbing her head softly with a small smile.

“You... got a place to stay?”

Hijiriido struggled to say anything, preoccupied with trying to stop herself from having an all-out bawl, but she eventually managed to get out, “I… I-I-I… still ha… have the dorm until the… end of the… week…” Finally finishing the sentence only seemed to upset her more, and without hesitation she threw herself at Anaido, burying her face in his shirt. “I was… so… fuuuu….! Stupid!”

“Yeah… me too…” Anaido said, surprising even himself with how calm he was as he closed his eyes, wrapping his gangly arms around Hijiriido and pulling her closer. 

“I’m always stupid, aren’t I?”


	19. Discomfort; or, Good Luck

It was a surreal experience for Sakaido. Several times before, he'd sat opposite where he was now, trying to grill a confession out of a subject. To actually be in that seat now, he could almost understand what so often made them so squirmy. And the worst part? Nobody else was even in the room. After arriving at the station, he'd been escorted to the integration room, having to endure the embarrassing stares of a few former colleagues along the way, and told to just wait. In a way, just sitting here waiting for the integration to begin was almost worse than the interrogation itself. He almost found himself feeling sympathy for his old suspects.

With no one seemingly coming anytime soon, Sakaido turned his attention to the room, trying to combat his growing unease with general observation. Besides, every time he'd been here before, he'd never put much focus on the room itself, a room, he discovered, was in desperate need of a lighting adjustment. The only source of light came from a naked lightbulb hanging by a cord from the ceiling. Even as he watched it, Sakaido could notice slight flickers in its luminosity - a detail that had to have been done on purpose, or at least allowed to be unfixed. The metal chair he was in too, seemed to have been tailor-made to cause discomfort. At least it matched with the rest of the room: cold and gray, with the table he was sitting at pressed right up against the wall. Right opposite him was a similarly bleak-looking door, a stark contrast to the warm brown colouring on the other side.

Glancing over to the other side, Sakaido raised an eyebrow at the other wall, opposite to the one he and the table were up against. He found himself staring down Naruhito Sakaido; seeing his own reflection made him notice for the first time the grimace that he was pulling. The sight of himself looking so deathly serious was actually amusing enough to put his nerves at ease.

_Jeez... I hope I don't always look like that when I think!_

"Sorry for a salty look, guys! That wasn't for you," Sakaido assured to those who were no doubt behind the glass, watching him as he himself had done to so many others. "I'm getting kinda bored though, can't you send someone in and get this done already?"

"I assure you: nobody is on the other side, Sakaido..."

Deflating once again, Sakaido turned and glowered at Uraido as he stepped inside, dressed in a surprisingly casual manner, wearing his trousers and shirt, sleeves rolled up and all. Oh, and his shoes of course. "I'm afraid it'll just be the two of us today. Well, it will be if everything goes well." Giving a sickly sweet smile, Uraido sat down with a hearty sigh, contrasting with Sakaido's unamused glare.

"For once in your life, can you stop with that obvious act?"

Uradio's eyebrows perked up at the aggressive tone. "My my, I certainly don't remember you ever talking in such a manner."

"You don't know how long I've wanted to get that off my chest," Sakaido said, sitting up straighter with a small, self-satisfied smirk. Shaking his head, Uraido folded his hands, intertwining his fingers in an arch as he chuckled at his lap. When he lifted his head, his smile was somehow broader, but his eyes were damn-near slits, the edges wrinkled as he stared at Sakaido from between his eyelids. 

"I've no doubt... I take it your recent career switch is responsible for your new attitude towards me?"

"I told you, stop with the act already. Get to the point. Your guy saw me at the-"

"But I'm not acting," Uraido interrupted, lowering his hands and resting his chin on them, relaxing his face. "I really just want to catch up, ask how things have been for you." Sakaido's smirk dropped, his mouth pulling to the side as he narrowed his eyes.

"... better than I was under you. In fact, I'd say I'm happier than I'd ever been," he answered, going along with the game.

"Well, that's wonderful! Are you enjoying your newfound freedom?"

"Yeah. Income isn't as much and way more unstable, but I feel like-

"-you've rediscovered the reason you became a detective."

Sakaido's back hit the back of the chair, before suddenly leaning forward, his arms on the table and about to open his mouth to question, but one look at Uraido's smug expression immediately made him reconsider. So instead, he settled for glowering at him, waiting for him to continue. Uraido, again seemingly trying to contrast Sakaido, leaned back, crossing his legs and resting his hands on his top knee as he looked off slightly to the side.

"You've only been gone for, why it couldn't have been more than a few months! And yet in that short amount of time you've already achieved far more than you did in the force. I have to say, I'm quite proud of you." Uraido's eyes flicked towards Sakaido as if expecting a response, but Sakaido again kept silent. "Why, one often wonders why people bother to join the force anyway. Maybe we'd all be better if we followed your example."

"... you did all this on purpose." Sakaido furrowed his brow, balling his hands into fists as pieces started to fall together in his head. "You... deliberately antagonised me, knowing that I'd quit and go off on my own. And you... _want_ me to succeed?" 

"He does it again, the brilliant detective," Uradio said, clapping slowly with a small smile. "I didn't intend on letting you know, but then this whole incident happened, and it seems I have to step in now."

Crossing his arms, Sakaido leaned back into the chair, his eyes moving around as dots connected in his head, random words and odd behaviours suddenly making sense. "Why? What's the point of this? Why deliberately drive me and so many guys out, just so we can go do the same job somewhere else?"

"Tsk, tsk, perhaps I dished out praise too soon," Uraido chided, holding out his hands. "I thought I made it obvious! The police are corrupt, Sakaido. It has been for a long, long time. What was once a force for good and a breeding ground for talent has become another bureaucracy. Bright-eyed detectives come in hoping to devote themselves to the noble art, only to be absorbed into the machine, becoming obsessed with rising the ranks of a corporate structure. It even claimed my own partner, my best friend. I'm sick of it. Sick of it all."

"So what? Is driving people like me out some kind of convoluted way of saving us?"

"That's exactly it, though I do protest the usage of the word 'convoluted', Sakaido."

"That's exactly what it is!" Slamming his hands on the table, Sakaido rose to his feet in a swift action of frustration. "If the system is corrupt, you've done nothing to help! YOU'RE the one who drove me away! What about Hijiriido? What did she have to do with this?! You talked her into dropping out and fed her BS about me taking her in."

"I assure you, the girl's parents can look after her, if that's what you're worried about."

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT!" Realising just how loud he was getting, Sakaido looked at the door behind Uraido worriedly. However, as the seconds ticked by, he returned his attention back to Uraido, filling away the fact that no one came in the back of his mind. "Hijiriido's a talented girl, she would have made a great detective! And you manipulated her! You left her out in the cold!"

Uraido scoffed at this, rolling his eyes. "Hardly! The girl hardly knows what it's like to be cold."

"WHAT are you talking about?!"

"And as for why I _advised_ her to drop out, it's the same reason why I headed you all away from the force. For her own good. The only way detectives like us can thrive is on our own. Only once we're free of bureaucratic chains do we truly flourish. The old tales of freelance detectives might cease to be fiction, and we'll enter a Detective Renaissance."

At a slight loss for words, Sakaido fell back into his seat, covering the right of his face with his hand. "You're... absolutely delusional."

"Aha, I prefer to be called 'idealistic', but as long as this ends the way I want, I don't particularly care what you think about me."

"And how, _exactly_ , do you want 'this' to end?"

"My dear boy, it could be obvious by now! I want to see you and all your colleagues flourish as freelance detectives! Which brings us to today's topic." Leaning forward, Uraido resumed his earlier position, resting his elbows on the table and his chin on his hands. "It is my understanding that you were spotted at the Hayaseura mansion" yesterday."

Sakaido let out a slight growl, copying the man opposite and leading forward as well. "Oh, so know you want to talk about that? Don't tell me you're finally bored with talking about yourself?"

"Don't tell me you're fine with going to prison for trespassing?"

Getting the threat, Sakaido bit his tongue and leaned back slightly, signalling for Uraido to continue, which he did, gleefully. "Thank you for not lying and dragging this out. As I was saying, you were spotted by an officer, and once you were described to me, I recognised you at once. I realised that if I didn't step in and do something, my brilliant detective would soon find himself out of work. So hopefully, the two of us can come to an agreement that benefits both parties."

"Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Forgetting something? Hmm, no, I don't think I am. Why?" Uraido asked in a painfully clueless tone as he pretended to think about what he could possibly miss. For the umpteenth time, Sakaido felt his frustration flicker back to life again, the knowledge that this was exactly what Uraido wanted keeping him from acting on it.

"Anaido. Don't bother pretending you're guy saw him but not me. Why isn't he apart of this?"

Uraido continued to 'think' for a moment longer, before pretending to come to a realisation, snapping his fingers as his eyes lit up. "Oh, yes! I remember him. The blue librarian. Honestly, I could care less about him, though I admit his literary taste isn't too terrible. In this instance, I decided to be merciful and let him get off with the knowledge that his actions led you to this point." 

"Led me? What are you saying?"

"It's obvious that the only reason you were there in the first place was because of him. I thought that you would be above the influence of a deranged mental patient, but I guess you-"

"Don't. _Ever_. Talk about him like that."

Uraido, having been staring off to the side slightly, looked back at Sakaido, caught off guard a bit by the sudden tone shift. What he saw surprised him, despite having been deliberately trying to provoke a reaction. Sakaido's face was as blank as it could be, but his eyes, underneath his slightly furrowed brow, held an absolute storm inside them. The sheer amount of menace and genuine threat was enough that while it didn't particularly phase Uraido, it made him he realise he should probably hurry up and get to the point.

"Yes, well. I understand that you've entered a kind of partnership with Anaido, in that you work out of his rented office."

"Yes."

"Well, I'm proposing an alternative arrangement. As you know, I'm about to be promoted to senior commissioner. Should you agree to my terms, I'll see to it that you aren't charged for anything. I'll say my talk with you 'convinced' me that you must be innocent. No one will know, not even your girlfriend. To be perfectly honest for a moment, I do think that a light spot of trespassing, especially in a wasteland like the Hayaseura manor, is nothing to really make a fuss about anyway. After that, I'll make sure to get you your own office you can work out off."

"My own... office?"

"Indeed. It's a small, single room space, but I think it would suit you marvellously."

"And what's the catch? Don't pretend there isn't one."

Uraido laughed, shaking his head like Sakaido had said something stupid. "I wasn't going to. In return for all that, I'd like you to do just two things for me."

_Here it is._

Hunching his shoulders slightly, Sakaido leaned forward, eager yet nervous.

"One, I want you to stop investigating the Hayaseura Case. It's done and over with." It was a somewhat predictable request, but it ticked Sakaido off regardless. A thought rose at the back of his mind, and he thought now was as good a time as any to bring it up.

"I see. You definitely have a lot of investment in the Hayaseura Case. Any particular reason why?"

"It was an extraordinary case with an inconclusive ending, up until now I suppose," Uraido calmly said, lifting his shoulders then letting them drop. "It's the same reason you were so invested yourself, no? I do hope I don't detect a smidge of hypocrisy there." Sakaido glanced away with a silent guff, and Uraido gave him a smile before continuing.

"And two. I want you to avoid all contact with Kenzo Anaido and Miyo Hijiriido." 

In an instant, Sakaido's gaze locked back to Uraido. The man was staring at him, his eyebrows slightly raised, the corners of his mouth just barely upturned. Narrowing his eyes, Sakaido started pressing his body weight into the table, causing it to squeak. "What did you just say?"

"I'm not going to repeat myself. You heard me, Sakaido," Uraido said, making his delight no secret. "No meetings, no visiting Book, no asking either of them to act as a messenger for the other, and no emails. You've been provided with your own new computer, best and latest, to make sure. Of course, I can't do too much about your phone. But I'll be watching you for any suspicious movements."

"You expect me to agree to this bullshit!? Why are you isolating me from my friends!?"

"So, your friends consist of a mental patient with arithmomania and a girl nine years younger than you. Not the best look, but you always were a special on-"

"ANSWER THE QUESTION!" Disregarding his previous fear of someone hearing, Sakaido shot up, slamming his hands on the table to punctuate the furious expression on his face. Of course, this did nothing to effect Uraido, who barely even flinched.

"Mr. Anaido, it seems, is a bad influence on you. Before him, even despite your frustrations, you never would have done something so reckless like entering trespassing. Frankly, I'm disappointed that you would allow him to influence you like this. Regardless, however, your remarkable skills remain the same, and I would hate to see them go unused. Accept my terms, and I won't just allow your independent career to continue, I'll help it flourish."

Balling his hands, Sakaido sat down again as his temper started to sink. Even in situations like this, he wasn't the type to say angry for awhile. Even so, he continued smouldering at Uraido, yet found himself unable to say anything. Sensing he was on the verge of victory, Uraido went in for the kill.

"And if the benefits aren't doing it for you, there are the consequences if you don't. In addition to the fine and the spell in prison, once word of this gets out, your career as a detective is over. You think people would be willing to trust a detective who can't even keep himself out of prison? Your life in deduction would be over. And let's not even start on your girlfriend." Sakaido's eyes widened, clenching his teeth together as Uraido sneered.

_Checkmate._

"Could you imagine how difficult it would be for her? Ostracised by those around her because of her association with you? I doubt that'll be a good look for her."

"Don't you dare talk about her," Sakaido said, but it was clear Uraido's words have gotten to him. Biting his lip, his gaze fell to his lap, the effects his conviction would have on his partner sinking in. Knowing that he had won, Uraido stood up with a sigh.

"Well, I'm not sure about you, but I think I need a break. I'll leave you here to think about what to do. I do hope you make the right choice." Leaving him with that, Uraido tuned and walked out the room, allowing himself to burst out into an uncontrollable grin once his face was out of view. As the door shut, Sakaido lifted his head and leaned back, slouching slightly in his chair as he cased up at the ceiling, a tired, pained expression on his face.

_Dammit. I should have thought better of this. This whole thing is so... I was so stupid. And now I'm in Uraido's pockets. Maybe he's right. Maybe Anaido is a bad influence on me. Yeah, that's a thought. Wouldn't surprise me. He was right about a lot of things._

_Like the fact that I'm happier than I've ever been._

* * *

_**Brokaido** _

_I'm sorry, but I won't be coming back for awhile. Make sure  
Hijiriido's alright.  
_15:45

_???  
_ _what do youmean???  
_ _are you goingtoprison???  
_ _im so sorry  
_ _let me headover_  
15:45

 _No, I'm sorry. Look after the office for me. I mean, it's your_  
 _office anyways. Just please don't blame yourself. This isn't_  
 _your fault. Remember, look after Hijiriido. She really needs_  
 _a friend._  
15:46

 _shitshitshit_  
15:46  
 _what am isupposedtodo???_  
15:47

 _I've gotta go. Uraido's coming back. I'm sorry things went  
this way. I really enjoyed working with you. Thank you so  
much.  
_15:47  
 _You know what to do. Good luck, Brilliant Detective.  
_ 15:48

 _i love youman_  
 _wait no imsorryforgetit_  
15:48  
 _man???_  
15:50  
 _Sakaido???_  
15:53  
 _okay_  
 _ill do mybest  
promise  
good luck brilliantdetective  
_16:23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back at it again.


	20. Forwards; or, Keep On Keeping On

_i love youman_  
 _wait no imsorryforgetit_  
15:48  
 _man???_  
15:50  
 _Sakaido???_  
15:53  
 _okay_  
 _ill do mybest  
promise  
good luck brilliantdetective  
_16:23

Gripping his phone tightly, Anaido shoved it in his pocket, breathing through his nose harshly as he glanced out the window in his door. The day still as bright as it had ever been, he watched for a moment as various people and vehicles rushed past his shop, trying to reduce the amount of time they spend in the sun. Despite feeling the heat himself, Anaido felt an odd coolness about him. It was admittedly quite the bizarre sensation, but rather than continue to dwell on it more, Anaido picked up the two steaming cups of tea and walked around the shelves to the opposite corner. There, tucked away at the small table was Hijiriido, tucked up into a ball on her chair, hiding her face from view. Looking down, Anaido felt his eye twitch at the sight of her messily discarded trainers, but tried to put it out of mind as he placed one of the cups in front of her.

"I didn't know how much sugar to put in, so I just went with three. Hope that's alright," he said, sitting down and taking a sip of his own cup. Then another. Then another before he placed it on the table.

Hijiriido took a little while to respond, her eyes glancing up at him briefly before darting away, burying her face once more. "Why three?" she asked, her voice slightly muffled by her knees.

Snorting, Fukuda rapped his fingers on the table, grinning to himself. "Ahaha! What can I say, it's my lucky number. Besides, I thought you had a sweet tooth."

Rolling her eyes, Hijiriido sat still for a few more moments, before sighing and lowering her feet back down to the floor. After rubbing her eyes, still puffy and somewhat red, she reached over and grabbed the cup with both hands, taking a slow tentative sip. "Thank you," she said, placing the tea back down and leaning back into her chair, closing her eyes as she tapped her feet to a thoughtless rhythm.

Rubbing his fingers together, Anaido bit his lip, trying to keep his gaze on Hijiriido, but having to fight to stop it from flying off to look at something else. Stabbing his thumbnail into his finger, Anaido felt his focus come back a bit, and, taking advantage of the clarity, leaned forward and spoke quickly. "I don't think Sakaido's coming back. Not for awhile at least."

Hijiriido visibly flinched, her eyes opening as she balled her hands into fists, her foot taps becoming harsher stomps. "Shit... dammit!" Just before Anaido could catch a glimpse of her tears, Hijiriido pulled up her legs again and tucked her face between them and her chest, her form trembling as she struggled to suppress her sobs. "Di... Did he get arrested?"

"No idea, he hasn't responded," Anaido admitted, scratching at his scalp, slightly uncomfortable now. After a few beats, he reached over and placed his hand on Hijiriido's head, who seemed to tense up for a moment, before relaxing again. Once he was sure she wasn't going to brush him off, he slowly started rubbing her head. After a few strained gulps, Hijiriido quietened down, now breathing at a steady rate. Settling into a rhythm, Anaido's eyes narrowed as he thought to himself, using his free hand to tap the side of his head.

"Are you... okay?" Hijiriido asked suddenly, startling Anaido. With his hand still on her head, she looked up, her eyes coming back into view. 

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. You seem to be taking this well."

Raising his eyebrows, Anaido thought for a moment, before laughing to himself and leaning back, his hand slipping off Hijiriido's head. Quickly trailing off, he picked at his ear, a small, odd grin tugging at his lips. "For now. I'll probably crash hard later on. But I can't do it now. I've got a job to do. I'm a brilliant detective. Nothing else matters now."

Sliding her feet off the chair, Hijiriido sat up properly, leaning forward in intrigue despite her still shaky demeanour. "You're a... what?" 

His smile getting larger, Anaido looked her in the eye, crossing his legs. "Hey, Hijiriido? What do you think you know about the Hayaseura Case?"

* * *

"That son of a bitch!"

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Anaido couldn't help but laugh as Hijiriido slapped the table, causing her cup to bounce and the cold tea to slosh about. Her prior melancholia and depression already a distant memory, Hijiriido stood up from her chair and started pacing back and forth along the length of the nearest bookshelf. "I knew he was slimly, but... shit!" Throwing her hands up in frustration, Hijiriido stopped pacing, racing her fingers through her hair as she muttered to herself. She was quick to calm down, however, and her hand soon fell to her chin, her eyes narrowing as thoughts raced around her head. She continued like this, shuffling around slightly as she pondered, while Anaido watched, slightly entranced by the way her eyes darted about, only to jump when she suddenly punched her palm, her teeth slightly bared in anger.

"We can't just sit here! We need to do something to bring this asshole to justice! God, I can't believe that he's gotten away with this all these years! Why hasn't anyone figured it out?! Surely someone has?! Is there a journalist out there actually doing their job or-!?"

As Hijiriido's speech devolved into a vague rant against the press, Anaido downed the rest of his tea with a smile, content to watch the girl hype herself up with increasingly flamboyant hand gestures.

_Guess we're more alike than I thought. As long as we've got this goal right in front of us, we'll keep on keeping on. Can't stop and think about it, can we? No, definitely not. I don't need any more reasons to hurt myself. Hmm.. egh. I hope she isn't like me in that regard..._

"Anaido!"

"Yeah?" Snapping back to reality, Anaido stood up automatically, realising that Hijiriido had now turned her attention towards him, crossing her arms in a strong, daring pose.

"We've gotta find proof that Uraido was behind the massacre! If we do, then Mr. Sakaido's name will be cleared!"

"I mean, he actually did trespass, so really what is there to cle-?"

"You know what I mean!" Hijiriido insisted, waving her arms up and down, dragging another laugh out from Anaido.

"Ahahaha! You're too easy to mess with!" Reaching over, he gave a flushed Hijiriido a quick head pat, before lowering his arm, holding out his hand with a thin, toothy grin. "Thanks to our brother-in-arms, yours truly now has a lead. Sure, neither of us are actual detectives, but put our heads together, and I'd say we're at least half as smart as Sakaido. Two isn't as good as three, but it sure as hell is better than one."

Matching with a smirk of her own, Hijiriido leaned forward and firmly grasped Anaido's hand.

"Ain't that the truth!"


End file.
